Since being forced to leave the city of Donetsk in 2014, Shakhtar have been on a never-ending odyssey to find a place to play their home games.

With UEFA banning European competition matches in Ukraine because of the military threat, the club have already played in Poland and Germany.

But for this Champions League season (2026/27), their chosen "home" is Stamford Bridge in London.

The struggle to reconcile the pride of competing in the world's biggest club tournament with being exiled from their homeland was neatly summed up by former player and current club CEO Darijo Srna in an interview with ge.

"We lost Donetsk, our stadium, our training ground, our homes and our fans. We played in Lviv, we played in Kharkiv, we played in Kyiv. After the full-scale war began in 2022, we played in Poland and Germany. We're everywhere. We're a team without a home. (...) We hope to have a great atmosphere at the stadium (Stamford Bridge) and strong support from the fans. England and the United Kingdom are supporting many Ukrainians during the war. They opened their doors," he said.

The choice of the legendary English stadium rested on three main factors, as ge's report highlighted.

Despite being accustomed to rotating players and the strain of being a team constantly on the move, their hope, as the report highlights, remains the same: an end to the war and a return to the Donbass Arena.

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From a tactical formation and squad depth perspective, "Find out why Shakhtar chose London as their Champions League home" carries substantial tournament implications for international seeding and domestic campaign momentum. Coaching staffs are heavily weighing high-pressing efficiency (PPDA), defensive transition pace, and fixture fatigue management.

Tactical analysts monitoring Champions League metrics emphasize that squad adaptability and set-piece execution will likely dictate outcomes in high-leverage knockout environments. Real-time match telemetry and tracking data continue to inform managerial decision-making.

Editorial Fact-Check & Verification Note: This briefing was curated, corroborated, and synthesized by the Soccer2026 Global Editorial Desk. Readers following "Find out why Shakhtar chose London as their Champions League home" are encouraged to review the full primary source coverage linked below for complete historical context, direct quotes, and official statements.