In the middle of war
How Russia clones a Ukrainian football club
May 5, 2026 – 12:40 p.mReading time: 2 minutes
While Shakhtar Donetsk is playing for the title in the European Cup, a club with the same name is playing in Russia. Other Ukrainian clubs are also being cloned during the war, despite protests.
While Shakhtar Donetsk is fighting for a place in a final on the international stage, the club name appears elsewhere in a completely different context. In Russia’s fourth division there is a team that has a lot of striking parallels to the traditional Ukrainian club.
Orange and black jerseys, crossed hammers in the coat of arms and even the name: Shakhtar Donetsk currently exists in duplicate. While the original plays against Crystal Palace on Thursday (9 p.m. in the t-online live ticker), a copy is active in the Russian league at the same time. Other clubs from occupied territories are also copied by the war opponent
The Ukrainian association had already protested to UEFA in October. A letter said the new Shakhtar used “the name and identity of the real Shakhtar without any legitimate right.” The association also spoke of an “attempt to legitimize the occupation and erase the identity of Ukrainian football.” Nevertheless, the team started playing in March.
In addition to Shakhtar, Zorya Luhansk is also represented in Division B, Group 1 – also a copy of a Ukrainian first division team. There is also FK Sevastopol, the successor to a disbanded club from Crimea.
The new Shakhtar does not play its home games in Donetsk, but in Taganrog, Russia, around 120 kilometers away. Club president Igor Petrov says they want to return to the Donbass Arena “as soon as circumstances allow.”
Petrov himself has a history in Ukrainian football. In Ukraine’s first competitive game after independence on September 7, 1994, he led the team onto the field as captain. Later he also played for Shakhtar. Today he says: “I’m happy that my hometown club is playing in Russian football again.”
Around 500 spectators watch the home games in Taganrog. Jerseys, flags and chants are based on the Ukrainian original. The club names 1936 as its founding year, and the cup victory in 1961 is also listed. However, the period since Ukrainian independence is missing – as is the UEFA Cup victory in 2009. Under the heading “Modern Shakhtar” it says instead that the club is “convinced that peace will return to Donetsk”.
