Ukrainian club Shakhtar Donetsk
Ukrainian club Shakhtar Donetsk are targeting Chelsea’s Stamford Bridge as the venue for their Champions League home games this season.
Shakhtar have been unable to play at their Donbas Arena since 2014, following Russia-backed forces’ seizure of parts of Donetsk. The club has since hosted domestic fixtures in cities including Kyiv and Lviv, while their European home matches have been played in Germany, Slovenia and Poland.
As reported by BBC Sport on Friday, negotiations are ongoing, with Ukrainian sources indicating that Stamford Bridge is the preferred option because of its 40,000-capacity and location in west London.
The move is not understood to be commercially motivated. Instead, the two clubs have developed a strong relationship since Chelsea signed Ukrainian winger Mykhailo Mudryk from Shakhtar in 2023 and through their involvement in the Game4Ukraine charity match.
