Olena Zelenska Foundation Restored the Hostomel Central Stadium, Damaged During the Occupation

Hostomel was one of the cities of Kyiv defense since the beginning of the full-scale invasion. Like many buildings around it, the central stadium suffered significant damage at that time.

The Foundation decided to return the favorite place for sports games and training to children and teenagers.

On the eve of Hostomel Hero City Day, the First Lady of Ukraine and the Olena Zelenska Foundation team visited the restored Hostomel Central Stadium, damaged during the russian occupation in 2022.

The Foundation reconstructed the stadium thanks to the support of FC Bayern Munich football club and the Bavarian Industrial Association, with assistance from the Embassy of Ukraine in Germany.

The stadium was equipped with two new mini-fields and outdoor lighting, the electronic scoreboard and roof of the grandstand were replaced, and the changing rooms and coaching room were renovated.

“Today, more than 6,200 children, including IDPs, live in the de-occupied city. Therefore, our team needed to create a space for their development. I am happy that we managed to renovate this stadium. I hope it will be a place for new teams and future football stars to emerge!” Olena Zelenska said.


The Foundation team sought not only to restore Hostomel’s main sports arena but also to create a bright accent on it and add new emotions to this place. So, they came up with the idea of drawing a gorgeous mural on the podium.

“We wished to fill the lives of children in Hostomel with vivid colors. But it also had to be a modern and colorful solution. Therefore, we wished to involve creative artists who make such art for young people. Our children’s childhood should be filled with happy emotions and memories,” Nina Horbachova, Director of Olena Zelenska Foundation, said.

“More Than Football” is the title of the piece by Ukrainian artists – brothers Serhii and Vitalii Hrekh (Feros & Dilkone). In this drawing, the artists conveyed the mood and emotions of today’s youth.

Drawings by players of the children’s football team “Phoenix” became the essential elements of the mural. The children left their sketches and inscriptions on the wall of the grandstand under the artists’ supervision.

During their visit to Hostomel, the Foundation team got to know this children’s team, which currently consists of 68 young players.

“A sports space is a place of health, development, support, personal fulfillment, and struggle against inner obstacles. The children’s football team “Phoenix” has played football since the community de-occupation. Families with children return from abroad when adults see their children will have places for their development,” Kateryna Pavlenko, Head of the Department of Culture, Youth and Sports of Hostomel Village Council, notes.

FC Dynamo players Denys Popov, Volodymyr Brazhko, and Christian Bilovar visited young football players with us. It was a meeting for the children and a real chance to get inspired and believe in their football dreams.

We hope the renovated stadium will be the hub for many sports and cultural events in Hostomel and its neighboring communities.