On May 26, Kyiv transformed.
Suddenly, the cars disappeared from the city center’s streets. They were replaced by thousands of soccer fans, who came to Ukraine’s capital from all over the world with one purpose: to watch two of the top soccer clubs collide in the final match of Europe’s most important competition, the UEFA Champions League.
And the fans made one hell of a racket. They sang, shouted, and cheered on the streets in Spanish, English, Italian, German, and other languages. They took selfies, swilled beer, and crowded local bars, cafés, and restaurants.
It seemed like a separate city inside Kyiv, where only soccer fans lived (albeit under the close supervision of the Ukrainian police).
One such fan was Kevin Riotty from Britain. On the afternoon of May 26, he was watching three of his friends attach a red Liverpool banner to a kiosk near the Lva Tolstoho metro station. The banner read: “Liverpool FC. Support & Belief.” Riotty told the Kyiv Post he liked Kyiv, its beer prices, the warm weather, and “such warm hospitality of the locals.”
Another fan, David Brenda, came to Ukraine from Costa Rica. He was also impressed by how “beautiful and clean” Kyiv was, by its architecture and “delicious food, and cheap too.” And although these two men were rooting different teams, they both enjoyed the festive mood that had overtaken the Ukrainian capital.
Approaching 6 p.m., all the fans with tickets — including Riotty and Brenda — headed for Olimpiysky Stadium, the nation’s largest arena.
This stunning Kyiv venue had already played host to the UEFA European Championship in 2012, but it had seldom looked better than May 26.
And by 9.30 p.m., 62,000 spectators were gathered under the stadium’s roof, ready watch Spain’s Real Madrid and England’s Liverpool soccer clubs vie for the Champions League cup.
Among the spectators were journalists from world’s most well known media outlets — BBC, Reuters, El País, AFP, Associated Press, The Independent, El Mundo. They were all ready to bring the match to a global audience, whether through reporting or live broadcasts.
Then, at last, Andriy Shevchenko, one of Ukraine’s most prominent and internationally recognized soccer players, carried the trophy onto the pitch and the competition to determine its new owner kicked off.
Liverpool fans seemed to outnumber the Real fans. They were loud like thunder, singing their club’s anthem, “You’ll Never Walk Alone,” and booing whenever a Real player got hold of the ball.
But despite their support, the British team lost this game 1-3.
French player Karim Benzema scored the first goal for Real Madrid in the second half of the match. Liverpool equalized 4 minutes later. But then, Welsh striker Gareth Bale came in at the match’s 62nd minute and scored twice, turning the table in Real Madrid’s favor.
Bale was named the man of the match, and observers immediately dubbed his first score, a bicycle-kick goal, one of the best goals in the tournament’s history.
This makes Real’s thirteenth Champions League cup. And their victory in Kyiv makes them the fourth team to claim three successive European crowns – and the first to do it twice.
As the match ended, the Spanish club’s squad ran with the trophy around the stadium, posing for photographs and cheering. Later, at the post-game press conference, Real’s coach, Zinedine Zidane, praised his players.
“This squad don’t have a ceiling (to hit),” he said.
And although the players and fans left Olimpiysky Stadium by 2 a.m., music played on the streets until morning to celebrate the soccer festival just held in Ukraine’s capital — a city that, for at least one day, completely transformed to welcome international soccer fans.
