"The whole of Europe used to be humiliated here": new video of Donbas Arena in occupied Donetsk has gathered 1.4 million views

A new video that appeared online shows what the legendary Donbas Arena stadium, the former home arena of Shakhtar Donetsk, looks like now. You can see the abandoned stadium's facade, museum, and fan shop at the entrance.

The small video quickly became popular on TikTok, garnering over 1.4 million views. In the comments, viewers recall the history of the arena, when it was one of the best in Europe, and admit that they miss those glorious times.

"The whole of Europe used to be humiliated here," the author captioned the 20-second video.

The stadium was opened on August 29, 2009 and has become a true symbol of Ukraine's football greatness. The first match here took place on September 27 of the same year, when Shakhtar confidently defeated Obolon 4-0.

At the same time, the Pitmen's last official game at this arena, with 18,000 visitors, took place on May 2, 2014, when Shakhtar defeated Illichivets 3-1.

With the outbreak of the war in Donbas in the summer of 2014, the stadium was occupied. It was used as a base for humanitarian aid, but later the arena fell into disrepair due to lack of maintenance and further destruction. Today, the Donbas Arena remains a symbol of not only loss but also of hope for revival.

We would like to note that Russian terrorists and their accomplices continue to destroy everything related to Ukraine in the occupied territories. As previously reported, in May this year, the "authorities" of the so-called DPR dismantled the letter "A" from the Shakhtar emblem installed at the Donbas Arena in Donetsk to Russify the club's name.

In October, Russia announced that its Ministry of Sports intends to start "restoring" the Donbas Arena stadium this year, as well as integrating "their Shakhtar" into the Russian championship.

In early March, a video showing that occupiers had turned the Shakhtar stadium into an abandoned facility was posted online. It showed that the area around the sports complex is completely overgrown with grass, which no one cuts. You can also see destroyed tiles and broken turnstiles.

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