It is in the stands, among friends, behind waving flags bearing his club’s logo where Igor Kovtun feels most at home. But even the supporters’ terrace had to give way to the war. His club, Zorya, hails from the eastern Ukrainian city of Luhansk. His hometown is in territory taken over by pro-Russian separatists and is now part of their self-proclaimed “people’s republic.” Zorya now plays their home games in the southern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhia, or in Lviv, which is located around 1,300 kilometers (800 miles) away.
Many pro-European fans have left the industrial city of Luhansk because they were threatened and/or attacked by pro-Russian groups.
