Dynamo Kyiv kick off fund-raising tour for Ukraine war victims

Warsaw (AFP) – Dynamo Kyiv, Ukraine’s most successful football club, began a tour of Europe to help raise funds for the war-torn country with a friendly against Legia Warsaw in Poland on Tuesday.

The Ukrainian league did not resume after the winter break and has been put on hold indefinitely following the invasion by Russia on February 24.

Players from both clubs, draped in Ukrainian flags, observed a minute’s silence before kick-off for the victims of the conflict.

The game was attended by a crowd upwards of 20,000, with a huge “Stop the War” banner displayed across one end of the ground. Other signs read “Stop Russia Now”.

Money collected will be donated to organisations helping the millions of Ukrainians who have fled their homes.

Dynamo, the 16-time Ukrainian champions, won the match 3-1.

The team is due to travel to Istanbul to play against Galatasaray before making a trip to Bucharest.

The club has said it could also arrange games with the likes of Manchester City, Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain and AC Milan.