Donetsk

Province: Donetsk Oblast
Population: 1,100,700
Area: 358km²
June temperature: average highs of 23.1C
Motto: Opportunity is proved with business

Donetsk, is a large city in eastern Ukraine on the Kalmius river. Administratively, it is a center of Donetsk Oblast, while historically, it is the unofficial capital and largest city of the economic and cultural Donets Basin (Donbas) region.

Despite images of soot-caked faces and hob-nailed industry, the capital of the Donbas has actually been recognised by UNESCO as the world's cleanest industrial city and the centre is benefitting from a financial injection. Five rivers meander through it and the Sea of Azov, the world's shallowest sea, is an hour away.

THINGS TO SEE

Once divided into two distinct parts – the industrial south and residential north – Donetsk is now set out in easy-to-navigate Soviet grid style, with the 10km vulytsya Artyoma dividing east and west. A wander along it is a good place to start exploring, starting with the Lenin Komsomol Park by the Donbass Arena with its stark socialist sculptures and excellent views of the strangely attractive terykony (slag heaps).

The area is also home to municipal stadium RSC Olimpiyskyi, fronted by a statue of six-time world pole vault champion Sergiy Bubka in familiar, start-of-run-up pose. FC Shakhtar Donetsk away games are often screened live further down vulytsya Artyoma by the Lenin statue, the supporters gathering in their hundreds to create a sea of orange, many wearing miners' hats. Indeed, there are constant references to Donetsk's carbon roots, be it a bas relief or statue of a miner offering a piece of coal to the heavens.

Fan zone: Sherbakova Park
Donetsk's enormous 96,000m² fan zone, located close to the bus station, will feature three giant screens and will open for the duration of the tournament from 12.00 to 02.00 local time. It is free to enter and will broadcast all 31 matches live, though at other times there will be plenty of entertainment such as football skill tests, five-a-side pitches, live concerts and DJ sets, as well as offer a full range of food and beverages.

TRANSPORT

To and from
Donetsk International Airport is 8km north of the city centre and has daily flights to Kyiv, as well as regular services to Tel-Aviv, Vienna, Athens, Istanbul, Munich, Moscow and Larnaca. Just 1km away the Putylivskyi bus station has daily connections to Kharkiv (5.5 hours), Kyiv (12 hours) and Lviv (21.5 hours), though some actually start at the Main Railway Station, also north of the centre. There are direct trains to Kharkiv (from 5.5 hours) and Kyiv (12 hours).

Distances to other UEFA EURO 2012 venues
Kharkiv – 315km    Kyiv – 700km    Lviv – 1,175km
Warsaw – 1,465km    Poznan – 1,785km    Wroclaw – 1,750km    Gdańsk – 1,810km

In and around
Donetsk is served by trams, trolleybuses and buses. The main routes run from 6.00 to 23.00, thereafter night services run once an hour though for major events the usual schedule is extended. Single journeys cost 1 UAH, and tickets can be bought after boarding. There are also marshrutkas, fixed-route minibuses, throughout the city.

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Donbass Arena

The finals' easternmost venue cost FC Shakhtar Donetsk owner Rinat Akhmetov €320m to build.

UEFA Capacity: 50,000
Record attendance: 52,518 (1-0 v FC Dynamo Kyiv on 05/05/2010)
Opened: August 2009

This ultra-modern stadium, funded to the tune of €320m by Shakhtar owner Rinat Akhmetov, features an illuminated exterior and infrared heating system.

Designed by the same company behind the Fußball Arena München, it is situated in central Donetsk and at night lights up the huge fountain built beside it, complete with 30-tonne football, and the surrounding parkland.

The arena was officially opened on 29 August 2009 with a concert from pop star Beyoncé. The first match came two months later when Jadson's early penalty set Shakhtar on course to a 4-0 win against FC Obolon Kyiv.

The stadium is 54m high from pitch level to the top of a roof held up by 3,800 tonnes of steel. The glazed area covers approximately 24,000m², protecting a field that measures 105×68m.

Shakhtar spent 68 years playing at the Shakhtar Stadium, a 31,718-capacity venue that remains home to both their reserve side and city rivals FC Metalurh Donetsk. Between 2004 and 2009 they took temporary residence at RSC Olympiyskiy Stadium.