Military commissioners handed out draft notices to an entire football team on their way to a First League match

An entire football team, SK “Poltava,” the leader of the First League, was taken to the territorial recruitment center right before their match in Ukraine’s second division championship.

Thos information reported according to sports journalist Ihor Burbas on his YouTube podcast BurBuzz.

Last week, the team was traveling by bus to a home game against “Kudrivka” when they were stopped by military personnel. The entire team was transported to the recruitment center, where all players were issued summonses. They were then released to play the match, which they lost, reportedly because their morale was affected. As a result, they lost their leadership position in the First League.

Burbas explained that teams in the Ukrainian Premier League are granted exemptions, as they have been deemed critical for the economy during wartime, while many teams in lower leagues do not have such exemptions.

Earlier this summer, it was reported that an entire musical group named “Budmo” was mobilized in Kalush, Ivano-Frankivsk region, just before they were set to perform a concert on August 21.

In the spring, a prominent Ukrainian basketball player, 26-year-old Kyiv-Basket guard Vadym Zaplotynskyi, was detained while attempting to cross the border illegally. Following his detention, he was mobilized.