Ukraine soccer club Shakhtar Donetsk launches $25M project for Mariupol soldiers after selling star player

By Sammy Mngqosini, CNN

Ukrainian soccer club Shakhtar Donetsk has launched a $25M project for Mariupol soldiers and their families, the club announced Monday.

The launch of the ‘Heart of Azovstal’ initiative comes after the club sold star player Mykhailo Mudryk to English Premier League side Chelsea.

“I am allocating the $25 million (UAH 1 billion) today to help our soldiers, defenders and their families. The money will be used to cover different needs — from providing medical and prosthetic treatment and psychological support to meeting specific requests,” Shakhtar president Rinat Akhmetov said in a statement.

“Their acts of bravery are unparalleled in modern history. It is them, their sacrifice and courage that helped contain the enemy in the first months of the war and let all of us feel the inevitability of the Victory of Ukraine now,” Akhmetov added.

Shakhtar said they will receive a Ukrainian record-breaking transfer fee of $75M for the 22-year-old with an additional $35M expected as a bonus payment, the club confirmed in a statement Sunday.

Mudryk scored three goals for Shakhtar in the Champions League group stages this season before the team was eliminated.

Many of Europe’s top clubs were interested in securing Mudryk’s signature but Chelsea ultimately won the race.

Akhmetov added that he is confident that Ukraine will win the war against Russia, and one day “we will play a friendly against Chelsea at Donbass Arena in a Ukrainian Donetsk.”

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