In early March, the Ukraine national football team defeated Iceland to secure qualification for EURO 2024.
As a result, Ukraine will face Belgium, Romania and Slovakia in the group stage in Germany this summer in European football’s most prestigious competition.
Participating in the European Championship is important for every country. But playing in the tournament will be much more meaningful for Ukraine, a country devastated by Russia’s war of unprovoked aggression for more than two years.
To discuss the significance of Ukraine’s recent success, Mark Temnycky spoke to Ukrainian national team and Shakhtar Donetsk full-back Yukhym Konoplya and discussed Ukraine’s recent play-offs against Iceland and Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as the ongoing Russia draw. He touched upon Turkey’s invasion of Ukraine and how football developed. affected by the war.
euronews: On March 26, Ukraine qualified for the European Championship. What does qualifying for EURO 2024 mean for the Ukrainian national team and the country?
Yukhym Konoplya: Competence is very important. Ukrainians not only hoped for Ukraine to participate in the tournament, but observers from all over the world were also supporting our team.
We received many congratulations from our citizens and soldiers. As a team, we celebrated these achievements, but qualifying for the EURO was for the country’s defenders.
euronews: The EUROs are one of the most watched sports events in the world. Ukraine will be given extensive coverage throughout the competition. How could Ukraine use the European Championships to remind the world of Russia’s ongoing occupation?
Yukhym Konoplya: Ukrainian football players in Ukraine and across Europe are constantly talking to each other about how to maintain international focus on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Many people in Europe are aware that Russia has invaded Ukraine, and there will be additional attention to the war during the EUROs.
euronews: What impact did Russia’s invasion of Ukraine have on Ukrainian football? How did Ukrainian football players help their country during the war?
Yukhym Konoplya: At the beginning of the war there was nothing. All football stopped for half a year and the season ended.
Footballers have a very difficult job right now. Matches are constantly interrupted or stopped due to Russian missile attacks, and this is mentally and physically challenging for football players.
We hope football will return to pre-war times.
euronews: Many international observers believe the war started in February 2022, but the occupation first began in April 2014. Millions of Ukrainians, including Shakhtar Donetsk club members, had to leave Donetsk. Can you share what this experience was like for club members and their families?
Yukhym Konoplya: The first Russian invasion in 2014 was very difficult. When the 2014 war started, I was still a child and was at the Shakhtar Donetsk Academy.
I didn’t understand what was happening at that time. I had to leave my family when Shakhtar moved somewhere else.
In the beginning, I would visit my parents every few months, or they would visit me. We would see each other as often as possible given the circumstances.
As for the club, the first team was constantly looking for a new home. We played in Lviv, then we played in Kharkiv, then in Lviv. We finally settled in Kiev.
The constant relocation was difficult for everyone involved and seeing family members was difficult. Some of them could not see their family members because of this.
euronews: Some players, such as the Stand of Heroes Foundation, also took an active part in the war. Can you tell us more about the Heroes Never Die program?
Yukhym Konoplya: The Heroes Never Die Program is a way for Ukrainian football players to help football fans who are fighting and volunteering at the front.
There are also people who used to play football and defend the country.
We raised funds for weapons, drones and other important supplies for the defenders.
We sold our shirts and boots from which people bought these items and these funds were used to help the defenders.
euronews: Finally, how can the international community continue to provide assistance to Ukraine during Russia’s unnecessary and unjust war?
Yukhym Konoplya: We need everyone to stay united and strong. We must continue to believe in our defenders and help them as much as we can.
Providing them with the supplies and equipment they need is the most important thing that will help them win the war.
Mark Temnycky is a journalist covering Eurasian affairs and a non-resident researcher at the Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center.
