On September 27 and 28 at the "Bosco Center" stadium, the second round of the Ukrainian amputee football championship (football on prosthetics) is taking place. The Ukrainian Football Association officially launched this project within its social initiative "League of Strong Ones" in August.

Over two days, 10 teams from all over the country will compete on the football fields: «MSK Dnipro» (Cherkasy), «Pokrova AMP» (Lviv), «Shakhtar Stalevi» (Donetsk), «Burievoy» (Kyiv region), «Crusaders» (Lutsk), «Vinnytsia AMP» (Vinnytsia), «Invincible Ones» (Kharkiv), «Titans» (Zhytomyr), FC «Bartka» (Ivano-Frankivsk), «Vikings» (Ternopil).

Photo: Dan Balashov

Most of the players are war veterans who returned to their beloved sport—football—after rehabilitation.

Honored guests attended the official opening ceremony of the second round of the Ukrainian championship.

«Thank you to everyone involved in promoting amputee football and supporting this cause—you are people with big hearts. Rehabilitation through sports is the best way to recover. On behalf of Mayor Andriy Ivanovich, I extend greetings to each of you. Lviv is proud to host this championship and meet such incredible people. We are with you, we are captivated by your spirit», — noted Anton Nikulin, Head of the Sports Office of the Lviv City Council.

Photo: Dan Balashov

«I sincerely thank the organizers, athletes, and coaches. It's great to see you at such a wonderful tournament. We are with you—you are with us! Glory to Ukraine!», — noted Mariusz Boguczyk, Director of the Polish League Ekstraklasa for amputee football.

«It was hard to believe that we would gather in such numbers within this short time. I want to thank the Polish league where we gained invaluable experience and learned new things. We are grateful to the Ukrainian Football Association for developing this sport. We are happy that the "Bosco Center" has become a home for an amputee football team and FC «Pokrova». We are always glad to see you here. I wish everyone success, peace to us all in the coming year!», — emphasized Father Mykhailo Chaban, Provincial of the Salzian Order of St. John Bosco UGCC.

Photo: Dan Balashov

«I want to assure you that this championship will be extraordinary and filled with events. Seeing your progress is a great inspiration for us. I wish everyone good matches today and tomorrow, and further development of amputee football next year!», — stated Olena Balbek, CEO of the UAF Foundation, member of the President's Board.

Military personnel undergoing rehabilitation at the Superhumans center also attended the championship match.

The championship will run until December 2025. Matches will take place in Kyiv, Kyiv region, Lviv, Cherkasy, and Ivano-Frankivsk.

The tournament is supported by the Ministry of Veterans Affairs of Ukraine, the Ministry of Youth and Sports of Ukraine, and the Agency for Mass Sport of Ukraine.

Official partners of the Ukrainian Amputee Football Championship include Mastercard and Oschadbank. Project partners also include match broadcaster MEGOGO, Ukrzaliznytsia, «Lvivske», adidas, and the Canada-Ukraine Foundation.

Photo: Dan Balashov

Championship matches will be broadcast live on MEGOGO media service and the YouTube channel of UAF.

*Amputee football (ampfoot) is a sport for people with amputations or congenital limb deficiencies. The game follows these basic rules: 7 players are on the field (6 outfield and one goalkeeper). Outfield players must have an amputation or lower limb deficiency, while the goalkeeper must have an upper limb deficiency. Outfield players move around the pitch using prosthetics without them, while goalkeepers play without prosthetics. The game consists of two halves of 25 minutes each with a 10-minute break in between. The field is smaller than a standard football pitch (60x40 m). Adapted rules of football are used with an emphasis on player safety. There are women's, men's, and mixed teams. This dynamic and exciting sport promotes inclusion and inspires with its spirit of struggle and teamwork.

Over 100,000 people in Ukraine live with amputated limbs. For many of them, amputee football opens the way to physical and psychological recovery, returning to an active life and joining a community of like-minded individuals.

Photo: Dan Balashov

*«League of Strong Ones» is a social project by the Ukrainian Football Association that helps people with amputations or limb deficiencies return to an active life and find inspiration through sports. The project covers a wide range of tasks: recruiting new players, creating teams in cities, organizing training sessions, preparing professionals (coaches and managers), as well as equipping teams with full sporting equipment. UAF also develops the competitive aspect by holding cups and initiating championships. Official partners of «League of Strong Ones» include Mastercard and Oschadbank.

Within a year, amputee football centers were established in 18 cities across Ukraine: Boryspil, Vinnytsia, Dnipro, Zhytomyr, Zaporizhzhya, Ivano-Frankivsk, Kyiv, Kryvyi Rih, Lutsk, Lviv, Odesa, Rivne, Ternopil, Kharkiv, Khmelnytskyi, Cherkasy, Chernivtsi, and Chernihiv. The project encouraged the creation of 20 teams that are actively developing, contributing to the popularization of amputee football throughout Ukraine. In total, over 500 players have been involved in these teams, training intensively, improving their skills, and participating in competitions.

In January 2025, the first tournament, the Winter Cup «League of Strong Ones», was held with five team participants. In March, the «League of Strong Ones» national team played an historic match against Red Flamingos in Belgium and won 1-0. And already in May, the Spring Cup «League of Strong Ones» took place, featuring eight teams.

Less than a year after its establishment, "League of Strong Ones" became a laureate of the prestigious UEFA Football Awards 2025 in the category "National Association."

*UAF Foundation is a charitable foundation established by the Ukrainian Football Association that implements social projects and fundraising aimed at developing football in Ukraine. The main areas of activity include adaptive football, mass children's football, women's football, social support, and restoring sports infrastructure. The foundation also initiates projects related to overcoming war consequences using the unifying power of football for positive changes in society.