By Mark Baber
May 9- Sparked by the recent massacre in Odessa, the Ukrainian Football Federation (FFU) has ruled that the next round of league games, as well as the cup final, will be held behind closed doors, whilst no matches will be held in the troubled Donetsk, Luhansk, Odessa and Kharkiv regions.
On 2 May, a march by supporters of Chornomorets Odessa and Metalist Kharkiv fans in support of ‘Ukrainian unity’ quickly degenerated into violence involving pro- and anti-Kiev groups and the police. Police apparently lost all control as a large group of ultras and Right Sector radicals went on to attack pro-Russian protestors at the local Trade Union house.
The official death toll now stands at 37, 24 of whom — including pensioners, women and a pregnant worker in the building — died of burns or carbon monoxide poisoning, five of gunshot wounds and eight from falls. Whilst some people tried to help those trapped inside the building, horrific video footage shows those who jumped to escape the flames being severely beaten.
The violence in Odessa marks the culmination of years in which supporters groups at every major club in Ukraine have been hijacked by politically motivated ultras.
The FFU’s Executive Committee has now decided, following a request from the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA), that the 29th round of the Premier League, the 27th round of the first league and 33rd round of the second league as well as the final of the Cup of Ukraine on May 15th will be played with no spectators.
The situation regarding later rounds of these competitions will be kept under review, with safety and security being the top priority. The venue of the cup final will be decided in the near future, whilst it is highly likely the FFU will accede to the MIA request that all remaining championship matches will be played behind closed doors.
The FFU decision follows receipt of a letter from the MIA which stated that, “The incidents that happened ahead and during the league matches on April 27 at Kharkiv and on May 2 in Odessa clearly proved the risk of trouble.”
Maidan activist Dmitry Bulatov, who is now the country’s Sports Minister, declared that “I received information that there would be bloodshed at the Cup Final if it was played in Kharkiv.”
According to the letter of the Ministry of Internal Affairs to the FFU, “Today the situation in the country is extremely unfavourable for staging football matches.”