Last updated on .
While exploring Kyiv, I walked to the Olimpiyskiy National Sports Complex. It’s a huge stadium located in the city center.
Olimpiyskiy National Sports Complex is the official home of the Ukrainian national football team, the unofficial home of Dynamo Kyiv, and where the Euro 2012 Final was held. It’s the second largest stadium in Eastern Europe with seating for over 70,000.
The stadium opened in 1923 and once had a capacity of over 100,000. It has been renovated a few times, most recently between 2008 and 2011. In addition to football matches, the stadium also hosts concerts. It’s located on Troitska Square.
Dynamo Kyiv Museum
The Dynamo Kyiv Museum is attached to the official team store and admission is free (as of September 2020). It was all in Ukrainian, but I speak football so I managed to get by.
The museum features photos and stories of a few famous players I noticed, such as Andriy Shevchenko and Oleg Blokhin.
There were also several interesting looking trophies on display, including the 1974-75 UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup.
Stadium Tours
As I was leaving the museum I noticed there were stadium tours. The next one was in 2 hours, so I took a long lunch break before the tour. I returned to the stadium just in time. Tours for adults are ₴100 (as of September 2019) and run Wednesdays, Fridays, and weekends (except for event days) at 1pm, 3pm, and 5pm. My tour lasted about 45 minutes and was done in Russian and English.
Olympic Court
The tour started outside the stadium where the guide gathered everyone and gave a quick introduction. We then entered the stadium through the Olympic Court, which is an atrium with a glass ceiling. Special events are held in this hall.
Gallery
Next, we were taken to a room used as a gallery. There were several paintings of players on the wall, each one signed by the player depicted. There was also a model of the stadium.
Press Room
From there, we walked through the corridors to the press room, where players and coaches are interviewed after the game. The room has a turf surface and players also use it for training.
Locker Room
The team locker room is attached to the press room. The players’ jerseys were neatly hung up for the next game.
A jacuzzi, showers, and the trainer’s tables were also in the locker room.
The Field
From there, it was through the tunnel and onto the field. It was quite dramatic to walk onto the pitch in such an enormous stadium.
While we were only allowed to walk to the edge of the track and touch the field, we were given the opportunity to sit on the benches to see what the stadium looks like from that perspective.
VIP Section
The last part of the tour was to have a seat near the VIP section and admire the view and the roof. The views were excellent from these seats, and I ended up having a good laugh with an animated Russian guy who was the life of the tour.
Game Day
While seeing the stadium from a insider’s perspective was great, I had to go to a game to get the full experience. After the tour was over, I bought a ticket for a game a few days later to watch Dynamo Kyiv play Illichivets Mariupol.
