The Ukrainian Football Association within the framework of the social project " Liga Dugikh" has opened a new season in amputball - on March 7, the 2026 Ukraine Cup Amputball will start.

The tournament brings together 16 teams from various regions of the country that will compete for one of the main national trophies.

Today, February 20, a blind draw for the 1/8 finals was held at the Football House:

"Podilskyi Vovky" (Khmelnytskyi) - "Stal Bukovyna" (Chernivtsi)

"Dnipro Chest" (Dnipro) - "Bartka" (Ivano-Frankivsk)

"Metallist 1925 Nizlaminni" (Kharkiv) - "Vikinhy" (Ternopil)

"Shakhtar Stalivye" (Donetsk) - "Pokrova AMP-2" (Lviv)

"Kryvyi Rig AMP" (Kryvyi Rih) - "Vinnytsia AMP" (Vinnytsia)

"Titany" (Zhytomyr) - "Veres Mriya" (Rivne)

"Kolos-Bureviy" (Kyiv Oblast.) - "Sich" (Zaporizhzhia)

"KristoNosci" (Lutsk) - "Pokrova AMP" (Lviv)

The tournament will take place in three stages according to the classic cup system:

— 1/8 finals - March 7-8;

— 1/4 finals - March 14-15;

— final four (to be held in Kyiv) - March 21-22.

"Due to the security situation in cities such as Kryvyi Rih, Dnipro, Zaporizhzhia, and Kharkiv, these cities will not be able to host matches of the tournament. If teams from these cities are drawn as hosts based on the draw results, the matches will take place at artificial pitches of the nominal guests. In case two teams from these cities end up in one pair, a decision about the venue for the match will be made by the Cup Directorate,"— noted Liga Dugikh's development manager Bohdan Melnyk.

"Judging by the schedule, practically every team has a chance to reach the semi-finals and finals. Already on the first stage, we are expecting very competitive matches. In particular, the match between 'Pokrova AMP' and 'KristoNosci' could become one of the most spectacular games. I wish all participants good luck and success. Our players and players deserve to get maximum satisfaction from amputball—from a game they put their soul and heart into,"— noted Liga Dugikh's development manager Vitaliy Maniyo.

The launch of the 2026 Ukraine Cup Amputball is another step in the systematic development of adaptive sports in the country and expanding competition opportunities for players. The tournament will become an important platform for raising team levels and preparing for the second Ukrainian amputball championship.

The name of the 2026 Ukraine Cup winner will be known by mid-spring.

*Amputball — is a sport for people with amputations or congenital defects in their lower limbs. The game follows these basic rules. On the field, there are seven players (six outfield and one goalkeeper). Outfield players must have an amputation or defect in their lower limb, while the goalkeeper has it in his upper limb. Outfield players move on crutches without prosthetics, while goalkeepers play without crutches. The game consists of two halves of 25 minutes each with a 10-minute break. The field is smaller than a standard football pitch (60x40 m). Amputball uses adapted football rules with an emphasis on player safety. There are women's, men's and mixed teams. It is a dynamic and spectacular sport that promotes inclusion and inspires the spirit of struggle and team play.

In Ukraine, there are over 100,000 people with amputated lower limbs. For many of them, amputball opens a path to physical and psychological recovery, returning to an active life and joining communities of like-minded individuals.

* Liga Dugikh — is a social project of the Ukrainian Football Association that helps people with amputations or impairment in one limb return to an active life, find inspiration through sports. The project covers a wide range of tasks: recruiting new players, creating teams in cities, organizing training sessions, preparing specialists (coaches and managers), as well as providing teams with full-fledged sports equipment. UAF also develops the competitive component: hosting cups and championships. Mastercard and Oshadbank are official partners of Liga Dugikh.

In one year, amputball centers were established in 18 cities across the country: Boryspil, Vinnytsia, Dnipro, Zhytomyr, Zaporizhzhia, Ivano-Frankivsk, Kyiv, Kryvyi Rih, Lutsk, Lviv, Odessa, Rivne, Ternopil, Kharkiv, Khmelnytskyi, Chernkas, Chernivtsi, and Chernihiv. The project inspired the creation of 20 teams that are dynamically developing, promoting amputball's popularity throughout Ukraine. Overall, over 500 players have been involved, actively training, developing their skills, and participating in competitions.

In January 2025, the first tournament took place - the Winter Cup of Liga Dugikh, with participation from five teams. In March, the national team of Liga Dugikh played a historic match against Red Flamingos in Belgium and won 1-0. In May, the second tournament took place - the Spring Cup of Liga Dugikh, which was participated by eight teams, while in November, the third tournament - the Autumn Cup of Liga Dugikh - was held in Chernivtsi.

Last year, within the framework of the social project " Liga Dugikh," UAF launched the first ever amputball championship in Ukraine. The winners were the Lviv team 'Pokrova AMP'—it will represent Ukraine at the Lize Champions 2026.

Less than a year after its establishment, Liga Dugikh became a laureate of UEFA FootbALL Awards 2025 in the "National Association" category.

*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 restoration of sports infrastructure. The foundation also initiates projects related to combating the consequences of war, using the unifying power of football for positive changes in society.