Famous Ukrainian football players and coaches addressed the players and coaching staff of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which is scheduled to play a match in Russia against the country's team on November 19:

Dear colleagues! Friends!

The match between Ukraine and Bosnia and Herzegovina teams that took place in your country on November 16, 2021, is a reminder of peaceful times for us. This very game became the last one before the full-scale invasion by Russia into our territory, which began on February 24, 2022.

For more than half a year now, Ukrainian teams, including the national team, have not had the opportunity to play any international games in their own country. And all this is due to Russia's aggression.

Millions of our citizens were forced to leave Ukraine. Mostly women and children. We are grateful to Bosnia and Herzegovina for becoming a welcoming home for some of them!

Tens of thousands among those who stayed or did not manage to leave have been killed or injured. Thousands of people on the occupied Russian territory in Ukraine were buried alive. Now residential quarters of our cities are under constant bombardment by the Russian army. The entire territory of our country is under constant rocket attacks from Russia, every day peaceful citizens and children die, fierce battles are being fought at the front...

We are fighting a huge military force that simply wants to destroy our country. And importantly, we are not just fighting for Ukraine. We are fighting for the future of the entire democratic civilized world, which includes Bosnia and Herzegovina.

That is why we were unpleasantly surprised and very saddened by the news that after such tragic events that have already happened and continue in Ukraine, your team agreed to play a friendly match with Russia's national team — the team of an aggressor country — on November 19.

We consider the decision by Bosnia and Herzegovina’s national team to play a match against the aggressor country's team to be a regrettable mistake. A mistake that can still be corrected!

Therefore, we urge you to refuse participation in the football match with Russia's national team! To refuse for the sake of stopping military aggression against Ukraine and for the future of democratic Europe!

With respect,

Oleg Blokhin, winner of the Golden Ball-1975,

Igor Belanov, winner of the Golden Ball-1986,

Andriy Shevchenko, winner of the Golden Ball-2004,

Anatoliy Demyanenko, participant in the World Cups 1982, 1986, and 1990,

Alexei Mikhailichenko, Olympic champion in football-1988,

Oleg Protasov, winner of the UEFA Silver Boot-1986.