Moving to London
Shakhtar Donetsk will host AEK Athens in the Champions League on Wednesday. The game will be played nearly 1,700 miles from their Ukraine home. Stamford Bridge, which is Chelsea's home stadium, will act as Shakhtar's home ground for their European fixtures this season.
Shakhtar are based in the Ukrainian city of Donetsk. They have not played at their home ground, the Donbas Arena, since 2014. This year, for security reasons due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the club looked for a venue to host four home fixtures in the league phase of the Champions League.
Shakhtar previously played home European fixtures in Poland, Slovenia and Germany. They were linked with using Brentford's stadium before agreeing to play at Stamford Bridge.
Club statements and history
FC Shakhtar released a statement about the move. They said that playing Champions League home matches at Stamford Bridge is a special opportunity, and they are grateful to Chelsea Football Club for the chance to host games at the venue. They added that Stamford Bridge is one of the most famous stadiums in football with an incredible history.
Chelsea do not have European fixtures this season after finishing 10th in the Premier League last season. The Blues cited their disappointing season and failure to qualify for European football as part of their reasoning to welcome Shakhtar. Chelsea stated they will work closely with Shakhtar to ensure matchdays run safely and smoothly.
Stamford Bridge will host four matches for Shakhtar. They play AEK Athens on Oct 14, Sporting CP on Nov 3, Fenerbahce on Nov 25, and Real Madrid on Jan 27. Chelsea were formerly owned by Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich. He was forced to sell the club after 20 years in 2022 under pressure from UK government sanctions after Russia invaded Ukraine. Shakhtar have largely played their domestic league home matches at the Lviv Arena, which is 600 miles from Donetsk, since 2014.
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