On August 29, on the Day of Memory of Ukraine's Defenders, at the NTU Viktor Bannikov field in Kyiv, the Ukrainian Football Association (UAF) opened the first-ever Ukrainian Amputee Football Championship — the largest official amputee football tournament in our country.

The Ukrainian Amputee Football Championship was initiated by the UAF within the framework of the "League of Strong" social project, which develops amputee football (football on crutches) and is a laureate of the prestigious international UEFA FootbALL Awards 2025.

For the UAF, it's a great honor to open the first official Ukrainian Amputee Football Championship precisely on the Day of Memory of Fallen Defenders and Defenders of Ukraine. We pay tribute to heroes and heroines who made our country possible and thanks to whom we have the opportunity to develop amputee football and the sport of the future.

Photo: Dan Balashov

The development of social projects that create opportunities for veterans and veteran women to integrate into civilian life is one of the key strategic directions of UAF's activities. The "League of Strong" is one such project. In Ukraine, there are over 100,000 people with amputations at the extremities, many of whom are our military who defended Ukraine on the battlefield and today have the opportunity to defend its honor on a football field.

Photo: Dan Balashov

Official opening with the participation of the President of the Ukrainian Football Association

At the opening ceremony, present was the President of the Ukrainian Football Association Andriy Shevchenko. In his speech, he emphasized:

"Before us are participants of the 'League of Strong' project that the Ukrainian Football Association started a year ago. Most players — our defenders, and I want to thank each one of you for defending Ukraine. We are here thanks to you.

I saw an amputee football training session on this field for the first time. You inspired us that this project should develop across all of Ukraine. Now in 'League of Strong' there are 20 teams and over 500 participants, and it's growing. It's not veterans who need to adapt to civilian life — society needs to adapt and do everything for people who defended the country. And football is no exception."

Photo: Dan Balashov

Ukraine among European leaders

Today, Ukraine holds second place in Europe for the number of amputee football teams in a national championship. Only Turkey has more (32 teams). For comparison, Poland has 8. This speaks to the unique strength and dynamism of our country: even during wartime, we are capable not only of fighting but also building a new future for veterans and veteran women.

Photo: Dan Balashov

The "League of Strong" project has created 20 teams in 18 cities across Ukraine, which are dynamically developing and contributing to the popularization of amputee football throughout the country. In total, over 500 players have been involved in these teams, actively training, developing their skills, and participating in competitions.

Guests at the event and opening match

The ceremony was hosted by Orest Drimalovskyy, a serviceman, journalist, and television presenter, while the Ukrainian anthem was performed by soloist of TNSMC Fagot.

Representatives from ministries and business supported the launch of the championship:

— Matvii Bidnyi, Minister of Youth and Sports of Ukraine;

— Natalia Kalmykova, Minister for Veterans Affairs of Ukraine;

— Ruslan Prykhodko, Deputy Minister for Veterans Affairs of Ukraine;

— Oleksandr Usyk, Absolute World Champion in Boxing;

— Serhiy Namov, Chairman of the Board of ATO "Oschadbank";

— Angela Kashperuk, Vice President for Business Development at Mastercard in Ukraine and Moldova;

— Oleh Khaidakyn, CEO of Carlsberg Ukraine;

— Lidiia Hrytsenko, Board Member of Ukrzaliznytsia on personnel and veteran policy issues;

— Valeriia Tolochina, Marketing Director at MEGOGO.

After the official part, an opening match took place: "Crusaders" (Lviv) defeated team "Unbreakable" (Kharkiv) — 3:0.

Photo: Dan Balashov

Participants of the Championship and further course of the tournament

For two days, on August 30 and 31, teams from Kyiv, Kyiv Oblast, Lviv, Cherkasy, Vinnytsia, Kharkiv, Lutsk, Ivano-Frankivsk, Ternopil, and Zhovkva will compete at the field:

—  "MSK Dnipro" (Cherkasy);

—  "Pokrova AMP" (Lviv);

—  "Shakhtar Staliev" (Donetsk);

—  "Burivyiy" (Kyiv Oblast);

—  "Crusaders" (Lutsk);

—  "Vinnytsia AMP" (Vinnytsia);

—  "Unbreakable" (Kharkiv);

—  "Titans" (Zhovkva);

— FC "Bartka" (Ivano-Frankivsk);

—  "Vikings" (Ternopil).

The championship will run from August to December 2025. Matches will take place in Kyiv, Kyiv Oblast, Lviv, Cherkasy, and Ivano-Frankivsk.

The tournament is implemented with the support of the Ministry for Veterans Affairs of Ukraine, the Ministry of Youth and Sports of Ukraine, and the Agency for Mass Sport of Ukraine.

Official partners of the Ukrainian Amputee Football Championship are Mastercard and Oschadbank. Project partners also include MEGOGO (match broadcaster), Ukrzaliznytsia, Lvivske, adidas, and the Canada-Ukraine Foundation.

Photo: Dan Balashov

Championship matches will be broadcast live on MEGOGO media service and the YouTube channel of UAF.

*Amputee football is a sport for people with amputations or congenital limb deficiencies. The game follows these main rules. On the field, there are seven players (six outfield and one goalkeeper). Outfield players must have an amputation or deficiency of the lower limb, while the goalkeeper — upper limb. Outfield players move on crutches without prostheses, while goalkeepers play without crutches. The game consists of two halves of 25 minutes each with a 10-minute break in between. The pitch size is smaller than standard football field (60x40 m). Adapted rules of football are used with an emphasis on player safety. There are women's, men's, and mixed teams. This dynamic and exciting sport promotes inclusion and inspires with its spirit of struggle and teamwork.

Over 100,000 people with amputated limbs live in Ukraine. For many of them, amputee football opens the path to physical and psychological recovery, returning to an active life, and joining a community of like-minded individuals.

Photo: Dan Balashov

*«League of Strong» — is a social project by the Ukrainian Football Association that helps people with amputations or functional impairment of one limb return to an active life and find inspiration through sports. The project covers a wide range of tasks: attracting new players, creating teams in cities, organizing training sessions, preparing professionals — coaches and managers, as well as equipping teams with full-fledged sports equipment. UAF also develops the competitive component: it conducts cups and initiates championships. Official partners of «League of Strong» are Mastercard and Oschadbank.

Over a year, centers for amputee football were established in 18 cities across Ukraine: Vinnytsia, Brovary, Dnipro, Zhovkva, Zaporizhzhya, Ivano-Frankivsk, Kyiv, Kryvyi Rih, Lviv, Lutsk, Odesa, Rivne, Ternopil, Kharkiv, Khmelnytskyi, Cherkasy, Chernivtsi, Chernihiv. The project has spurred the creation of 20 teams that are dynamically developing and contributing to the popularization of amputee football throughout Ukraine. In total, over 500 players have been involved in these teams, actively training, developing their skills, and participating in competitions.

In January 2025, the first tournament "Winter Cup of League of Strong" was held with five teams participating. In March, the team of «League of Strong» played an historic match against Red Flamingos in Belgium and won 1-0. And already in April, the second tournament — "Spring Cup of League of Strong" took place, where eight teams participated.

Less than a year after its inception, «League of Strong» became a laureate of the prestigious UEFA FootbALL Awards 2025 in the category «National Association».

*«UAF Foundation» — is a charitable foundation established by the Ukrainian Football Association that implements social projects and fundraising aimed at developing football in Ukraine. The main directions of the foundation's activities include adaptive football, mass children's football, women's football, social support, and restoring sports infrastructure. The foundation also initiates projects related to overcoming the consequences of war, using the unifying power of football for positive changes in society.