BREAKING: The Ukrainian Hockey Federation (FHU) yesterday suspended 171 people involved with the breakaway Ukrainian Hockey Super League (UHSL), including league president Serhiy Varlamov, league officials, and players from six teams. The individuals will be banned from playing for the Ukrainian national team while under suspension. For more, you can read the FHU notice here.
With the IIHF siding with the Ukrainian Hockey Federation in Ukraine’s ongoing hockey civil war, Donetsk Donbas owner Borys Kolesnikov plans his next move while the Ukrainian Ministry of Sport stays silent.
In Ukrainian hockey’s ongoing civil war, the two sides are now “dug in,” entrenching their positions while forcing outsiders into alliances on one side or the other.
Marshalling forces on one side is influential businessman and politician Kolesnikov, owner of Donetsk Donbas and organiser of EURO 2012 while he was the Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine under disgraced former President Viktor Yanukovych. He is also founder of the breakaway Ukrainian Hockey Super League (UHSL).
The general on the other side? Ukrainian Hockey Federation (FHU) President Heorhiy Zubko, a young business executive who was previously a Deputy Director General at Boryspil Airport.
Following last month’s split into two rival pro hockey leagues, the first weeks of this civil war have been spent consolidating assets and building alliances.
As the sides prepare for the next stage – a battle on the legal front – attempts to sway important allies like Ukrainian Minister for Youth & Sport Vadym Hutzeit remain ongoing.
Here’s what you need to know.
IIHF backs FHU
In an unprecedented move, International Ice Hockey Federation President Luc Tardiff has visited Ukraine twice in the last month – once on a fact-finding mission and once to deliver his findings.
He found conclusively in favour of the FHU.
“I came here after receiving a mission, a task from Minister Hutzeit,” he said during a meeting with the FHU, where he described the IIHF position after his legal team had delivered its findings.
“There is currently no Super League for the IIHF“
Tardiff also met directly with Kolesnikov to discuss the IIHF findings.
“These [USHL] clubs to do exist for me as there is no ‘Super League,’”he explained at the meeting.
“I explained to him and made it clear that the only way to talk about something was to accept sanctions or appeal against them and fully recognise the jurisdiction and authority of the FHU. There can be no agreement until the rules are followed.”
The comments make clear that the IIHF views Kolesnikov’s breakaway Ukrainian Hockey Super League as an unsanctioned rogue league.
“Of course, some countries have IIHF-independent leagues,” he said. “You can play four periods in those, or play 7-on-7, or invent some other rules. But those leagues have nothing to do with international hockey. If you want to spend your entire career in the Super League – play there. But if you want to play international hockey, you will have to go back under the IIHF umbrella.”
Kolesnikov Calls in Favours
This stance has incensed Kolesnikov, who delivered a response in an interview with XSport, a news site he owns.
“We don’t want to see the FHU in its current form,” he told the outlet.
“This organisation is dead to us.”
In his interview with XSport, which can be read here, Kolesnikov levels accusations at several people, including the FHU’s Sokil Kyiv Vice President Vyacheslav Letskan, HC Kremenchuk President Serhiy Mazur, and national team coaches Vadym Shakhraychuk and Konstantin Simchuk.
But he saved his strongest vitriol for FHU President Zubko.
“The Zubko Federation is not a federation,” said Kolesnikov. “It’s some sort of circle of special interests.”
Kolesnikov especially bristled at the idea that his 2020-21 Ukrainian champion Donetsk Donbas could be prevented from playing in the prestigious Champions Hockey League for participating in a league not sanctioned by the IIHF. Tardif confirmed that the IIHF would pull its 15% stake in the championship should Donbas participate.
“Donbas has its own individual contract with the Champions League,” he explained, dismissing Tardif’s comments. “The FUH has nothing to do with our participation in this European competition. The FHU will ‘glorify’ itself for all-time if it interferes with the participation of [Donbas] in the Champions League.”
Kolesnikov has had to mine his sporting rolodex – built over years as an influential sports owner and organiser in Eastern Ukraine – to find influential people to lend his fledgling league credibility.
Big names in Ukrainian sport, like Ukrainian National Olympic Committee President Serhiy Bubka and former manager of the Ukrainian national football team Andriy Shevchenko, have dropped pucks to open games in Kolesnikov’s UHSL.
In a statement last month, Ukraine’s called on both sides to “come together” under the guidance of Ukrainian Sports Minister Gutzeit.
The Ministry of Sports Stays Silent
Neither Gutzeit nor the Ukrainian Sports Ministry has offered any pathway to resolving the conflict, only calling on both sides to “keep talking.”
Days after Tardif’s visit, the Ministry shared a post on social media that ignored the primary purpose of Tardif’s visit to Ukraine and his meetings with the FHU and USHL. Instead, the Ministry chose to highlight the government’s investment in building hockey infrastructure.
“I would like to note that hockey is one of the priority sports in our country. Its development is fully supported by the Ministry and the Government in general,” the statement read.
Ukrainain Youth & Sports Minister Vadym Hutzeit shows IIHF President a model of the new arena in Melitopil
“Today we are actively developing high-achievement sports infrastructure because without this we will not be able to see more and more Ukrainian athletes on world podiums.”
The Kyiv Post has reached out to the Ministry for comment on how it plans to deal with the unsanctioned USHL but has not yet received a response.
The next front? Legal?
With the IIHF coming down clearly on the side of the FHU, Kolesnikov has vowed to continue his fight in the courtroom – be it over legal status of teams, player suspensions, or even the Ukrainian Hockey League’s existence.
Legal battles are already underway over the teams from Bilyy Bars White Leopards now known as Brovary Sports and Professional College (BSPC), and Kharkiv, who recently changed its name from Rulav Odd to Beserkers.
“The FHU came up with new names for some teams – completely new legal entities - and gave them points from White Leopard and Rulav Odd,” he complained. “Where – in what country in the world – is this possible?”
Kolesnikov did not address the UHSL decision to admit a new Kyiv-based team under the same “Sokil Kyiv” moniker as the legendary Kyiv-based team that still plays in the FHU’s Ukrainian Hockey League.
Kolesnikov vows to challenge the very validity of the current Ukrainian Hockey League.
“The FHU illegally became part of the founders of the UHL.” Kolesnikov told XSport, referring to last year’s decision that saw the FHU purchase 50% of the Ukrainian Hockey League.
“All results of the championship of Ukraine, which [the FHU currently] holds, may eventually be cancelled.”
The FHU has promised to suspend all players, coaches, and officials affiliated with the USHL
Kolesnikov promises to go to bat for them in court.
“If the FHU makes any attempts to disqualify someone, all the players will go to court and we will go with them,” he said, promising to take his fight to the highest levels.
Kolesnikov sees no peace without new elections for FHU President, and the removal of his rival Zubko.
“If they want to peacefully resolve everything in the country, they must reformat,” he said. “And if they don’t want to, then we will seek their exclusion through international courts and the IIHF.”
