Valeriy Vasylyovych Lobanovskyi (, ; 6 January 1939 – 13 May 2002) was а Soviet and
Ukrainian football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
player and manager.
[ He was Master of Sports of the USSR, Distinguished Coach of the USSR, and a laureate of the UEFA Order of Merit in Ruby (2002) and ]FIFA Order of Merit
The FIFA Order of Merit is the highest honour awarded by FIFA. The award is presented at the annual FIFA congress. It is normally awarded to people who are considered to have made a significant contribution to :association football.
At FIFA's ce ...
, the highest honour awarded by FIFA.[FIFA Order of Merit holders](_blank)
/ref>[Lobanovskyi Tournament news: Russian Super Cup in Kyiv?](_blank)
(rus.) In 2002 he was awarded the Hero of Ukraine
A Hero of Ukraine (HOU; ) is the highest national decoration that can be conferred upon an individual citizen by the president of Ukraine.
The decoration was created in 1998 by President Leonid Kuchma. As of 6 June 2025, the total number of re ...
award (posthumously), his nation's highest honour, for his contribution to Ukrainian football. In 2008, Lobanovskyi was ranked 6th in Inter
Inter may refer to:
Association football clubs
* Inter Milan, an Italian club
* SC Internacional, a Brazilian club
* Inter Miami CF, an American club
* Inter Playa del Carmen, a Mexican club
* FC Inter Sibiu, a Romanian club
* FC Inter Turku, ...
's list of the '' 100 Greatest Ukrainians'' following a nationwide poll that saw around 2.5 million people casting their votes.
Lobanovskyi is most famous for his spells managing FC Dynamo Kyiv
The Football Club 'Dynamo Kyiv', also known as Dynamo Kyiv, or simply Dynamo, ( ) is a Ukrainian professional Association football, football club based in Kyiv. Founded in 1927 as a Kyivan football team of republican branch of the bigger Soviet ...
and the USSR national football team
The Soviet Union national football team () was the national football team who represented the Soviet Union from 1922 to 1992.
After the breakup of the Union the team was transformed into the CIS national football team. FIFA and UEFA considers ...
. Lobanovskyi established Dynamo as the most dominant club in Soviet football in the 1970s and 1980s, winning the Soviet Top League
The Soviet Top League, known after 1970 as the Higher League (), served as the top division (tier) of Soviet Union football from 1936 until 1991. The league's name was a conditional designation used for brevity since being completely owned and g ...
eight times and the Soviet Cup
The Soviet Cup, or USSR Cup (),, , , (Moldovan Cyrillic: Купа УРСС), , , . was the premier football cup competition in the Soviet Union conducted by the Football Federation of the Soviet Union. The 1991–92 season of the tournam ...
six times in 16 years. In 1975 his Dynamo Kyiv team became the first side from the Soviet Union
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
to win a major European trophy when they beat Hungarian side Ferencváros
Ferencváros (, ) is the 9th district of Budapest (), Hungary.
Name
The southern suburb of Pest was named after King Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor, Francis I on 4 December 1792 when he was crowned king of Hungary.
History
The developmen ...
in the final of the Cup Winners' Cup
The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The competition's official name was originally the European Cup Winners' Cup; it was renamed the UEFA Cup Winne ...
. During the tournament, Dynamo Kyiv won eight games out of nine, resulting in a winning percentage of 88.88% – a record that stood for 45 years encompassing all of the major European club football competitions.UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League (UCL) is an annual club association football competition organised by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) that is contested by List of top-division football clubs in UEFA countries, top-divisio ...
, UEFA Cup Winners' Cup
The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European association football, football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The competition's official name was originally the European Cup Winners' Cup; it was renam ...
and UEFA Europa League
The UEFA Europa League (UEL), usually known simply as the Europa League, is an annual association football, football club competition organised since 1971 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European footb ...
Lobanovskyi and his team repeated their Cup Winners' Cup success in 1986
The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1
** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles.
** Spain and Portugal en ...
, beating Atletico Madrid in the final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final examination or finals, a test given at the end of a course of study or training
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which d ...
. In both 1975 and 1986, two of Dynamo's players (Oleg Blokhin
Oleg Vladimirovich Blokhin, or Oleh Volodymyrovych Blokhin (, ; born 5 November 1952), is a Ukrainian former football player and manager. Regarded as one of the greatest footballers of his generation, Blokhin was a standout striker for Dynamo ...
and Igor Belanov respectively) were also awarded the Ballon d'Or
The Ballon d'Or (; ) is an annual association football, football award presented by French magazine ''France Football'' since 1956 Ballon d'Or, 1956 to honour the player deemed to have performed the best over the previous season.
Conceived ...
under his tutelage. During Lobanovskyi's first two stints, the team also reached the European Cup
The UEFA Champions League (UCL) is an annual club association football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) that is contested by top-division European clubs. The competition begins with a round robi ...
semi-finals in 1977
Events January
* January 8 – 1977 Moscow bombings, Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group.
* January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (no ...
and 1987
Events January
* January 1 – Bolivia reintroduces the Boliviano currency.
* January 2 – Chadian–Libyan conflict – Battle of Fada: The Military of Chad, Chadian army destroys a Libyan armoured brigade.
* January 3 – Afghan leader ...
and quarter-finals in 1976
Events January
* January 2 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force.
* January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea.
* January 18 – Full diplomatic ...
, 1982
Events
January
* January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00).
* January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street Bridge in Washington, D.C. ...
and 1983
1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call.
Events January
* January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to TCP/IP is officially completed (this is considered to be the beginning of the ...
. With the Soviet Union national team, Lobanovskyi reached the finals of Euro 1988, losing to eventual winners the Netherlands
, Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...
, and won the bronze medal at the 1976 Summer Olympic Games.
After returning to Dynamo Kyiv in 1997 for the third time, Lobanovskyi led the team to another successful run in European competition. In the first full season of his third spell, Dynamo reached the quarter-finals of the Champions League in 1998, topping a group that included FC Barcelona
Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly known as FC Barcelona and colloquially as Barça (), is a professional Football club (association football), football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of ...
, Newcastle United
Newcastle United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. Since th ...
and PSV Eindhoven
Philips Sport Vereniging (; ), abbreviated as PSV and internationally known as PSV Eindhoven (), is a Dutch sports club from Eindhoven, Netherlands. It is best known for its professional association football, football department, which has pla ...
, famously winning both games against Barcelona, 3–0 in Kyiv
Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...
and 4–0 at Camp Nou
Camp Nou (), meaning ''New Field'' and often referred to in English as the Nou Camp, is a stadium in Barcelona and the home of La Liga club FC Barcelona since its opening in 1957. It is currently undergoing renovation, and with a planned increa ...
. The following season, Lobanovskyi and his team reached the semi-finals, where they were knocked out by Bayern Munich
Fußball-Club Bayern München e. V. (FCB, ), commonly known as Bayern Munich (), FC Bayern () or simply Bayern, is a German professional sports club based in Munich, Bavaria. They are most known for their men's professional football team, ...
, with star striker Andriy Shevchenko
Andriy Mykolayovych Shevchenko (, ; born 29 September 1976) is a Ukrainian former Manager (association football), football manager and Football player, player. Shevchenko is considered one of the greatest Striker (association football), strik ...
finishing third in the 1999 Ballon d'Or poll.
Lobanovskyi is highly regarded due to his achievements as a coach and is widely considered one of the greatest managers of all time.[ Throughout his coaching career Lobanovskyi won 33 official trophies, becoming the second most decorated manager of all time (behind ]Alex Ferguson
Sir Alexander Chapman Ferguson (born 31 December 1941) is a Scottish former professional football manager and player, best known for managing Manchester United from 1986 to 2013. He is widely regarded as the greatest manager of all time and ...
) and the most successful football manager of the 20th century. He also holds several managerial records in Soviet football, including most Soviet Top League titles, most Soviet Cup wins (shared with Viktor Maslov) and most USSR Super Cup wins. Lobanovskyi is the only manager to win a major European competition with an Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is a subregion of the Europe, European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural and socio-economic connotations. Its eastern boundary is marked by the Ural Mountain ...
an club twice. He is one of four managers to win the Cup Winners' Cup twice, and one of two (along with Nereo Rocco
Nereo Rocco (; 20 May 1912 – 20 February 1979) was an Italian association football, football player and manager. Regarded as one of the greatest managers of all time, he is famous for having been one of the most successful head coaches in Italy ...
) to accomplish the feat with the same team. Lobanovskyi has also won the Ukrainian championship five times out of five – an accomplishment not matched by any other manager. Lobanovskyi has coached three Ballon d'Or
The Ballon d'Or (; ) is an annual association football, football award presented by French magazine ''France Football'' since 1956 Ballon d'Or, 1956 to honour the player deemed to have performed the best over the previous season.
Conceived ...
winners — Oleh Blokhin
Oleg Vladimirovich Blokhin, or Oleh Volodymyrovych Blokhin (, ; born 5 November 1952), is a Ukrainian former association football, football player and manager. Regarded as one of the greatest footballers of his generation, Blokhin was a stando ...
, Igor Belanov and Andriy Shevchenko
Andriy Mykolayovych Shevchenko (, ; born 29 September 1976) is a Ukrainian former Manager (association football), football manager and Football player, player. Shevchenko is considered one of the greatest Striker (association football), strik ...
.
Early life
Valeriy Lobanovskyi was born on 6 January 1939 in Kyiv
Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...
. His father was a factory worker, while his mother was a housewife. He studied at the Kyiv school No.319 (now Valeriy Lobanovskyi Prospect, 146), where a plaque commemorating Lobanovskyi is installed and the school itself has been renamed in his honor. In 1956 he joined the Kyiv Polytechnic Institute
The Kyiv Polytechnic Institute ( KPI, ; official full title National Technical University of Ukraine "Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute") is a national public technological university in Kyiv, Ukraine.
Name
In the long period of existenc ...
but later transferred to the Odesa Polytechnic Institute, where he graduated.
Playing career
Lobanovskyi was a graduate of the Kyiv Football School No. 1 and the Football School of Youth in Kyiv (first coach — Mykola Chayka).
At the age of 18, Lobanovskyi was invited to the B-squad of Dynamo Kyiv, the most prominent Ukrainian football club at the time. His debut in the Soviet Top League
The Soviet Top League, known after 1970 as the Higher League (), served as the top division (tier) of Soviet Union football from 1936 until 1991. The league's name was a conditional designation used for brevity since being completely owned and g ...
came on 29 May 1959 against CSK MO Moscow.[''Лобановский жил футболом и футбол жил в нем!'' («Футбол в лицах», грудень 2005)](_blank)
Lobanovskyi became famous for his ability to accurately deliver curled balls from corner and free kicks (so-called ''curl
cURL (pronounced like "curl", ) is a free and open source computer program for transferring data to and from Internet servers. It can download a URL from a web server over HTTP, and supports a variety of other network protocols, URI scheme ...
'') — often Lobanovskyi was able to score the goal directly from the corner. He had regularly been working on these shots during training sessions, using Magnus effect
The Magnus effect is a phenomenon that occurs when a spin (geometry), spinning Object (physics), object is moving through a fluid. A lift (force), lift force acts on the spinning object and its path may be deflected in a manner not present when ...
and his own calculations. The Soviet press compared him to Brazilian forward Didi
Didi Chuxing Technology Company is a Chinese vehicle for hire company headquartered in Beijing with over 550 million users and tens of millions of drivers. The company provides app-based transportation services, including taxi hailing, private ...
who regularly curved the ball in a similar way at the 1958 World Cup
The 1958 FIFA World Cup was the 6th FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial football tournament for men's senior national teams. It was played in Sweden from 8 to 29 June 1958. It was the first and only FIFA World Cup to be played in a Nordic country.
Br ...
. Teammates often praised Lobanovskyi for his unorthodox mindset and ability to use dribbling
In sports, dribbling is maneuvering a ball by one player while moving in a given direction, avoiding defenders' attempts to intercept the ball. A successful dribble will bring the ball past defenders legally and create opportunities to score.
As ...
, which was unusual for such tall (187 cm) players.
Since 1960, Lobanovskyi was a full-fledged member of the starting line-up. He was mostly used as a left winger
In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...
, where he formed a duo with Valentyn Troyanovskyi. That same year he became the club's top goalscorer with 13 goals. In 1961
Events January
* January 1 – Monetary reform in the Soviet Union, 1961, Monetary reform in the Soviet Union.
* January 3
** United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces that the United States has severed diplomatic and cons ...
, Dynamo Kyiv became the first football team not from Moscow
Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...
to win USSR title, with Lobanovskyi scoring 10 goals. He was regularly invited to the national team, but due to strong opposition (at the time there were many top-level left-wingers in Soviet Union like Mikheil Meskhi
Mikheil Meskhi (Georgian: მიხეილ მესხი; Russian: Михаил Шалвович Месхи; born 12 January 1937 in Tbilisi; died 22 April 1991 in Tbilisi) was a Georgian footballer. Nicknamed the "Georgian Garrincha" for ...
, Anatoli Ilyin and Galimzyan Khusainov
Galimzyan Salikhovich Khusainov (, ) (27 June 1937 – 5 February 2010) was a Soviet footballer who played as a striker.
International career
Khusainov played for the Soviet Union national team scoring 4 goals in 33 appearances. He was a p ...
) was able to play only two international games, against Austria
Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...
and Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...
.
Overall he spent seven years with the club before leaving in 1964 due to conflict with the coach Viktor Maslov. Lobanovskyi finished his career after brief spells at Chornomorets Odesa
FC Chornomorets Odesa ( ) is a Ukrainian professional football club based in Odesa, Ukraine.
According to the club's website, it was formed in 1936 as ''Dynamo'', but until 2002 it carried a logo with 1958 and 1959[Shakhtar Donetsk
Football Club Shakhtar Donetsk () is a Ukrainian professional Association football, football club that was based in the city of Donetsk until 2014 when, due to the War in Donbas (2014–2022), War in Donbas, the club was forced to move to Lvi ...]
. Lobanovskyi ended his playing career at the age of 29 having scored 71 goals in 253 games in the Soviet Top League (42 goals in 144 matches with Dynamo Kyiv, 15 goals in 59 matches with Chornomorets and 14 goals in 50 matches with Shakhtar).[
]
Coaching career
Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk (1968–1973)
A year after retiring as a player Lobanovskyi was named the manager of FC Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk
Football Club Dnipro (, ) was a Ukrainian football club based in Dnipro. The club played its last season in the 2018–19 Ukrainian Amateur League. The club was owned by Ukrainian businessman Ihor Kolomoyskyi.
In 2018, FC Dnipro was forced ...
on 16 October 1968. That year Dnipro ended up third in the Group 3 (Ukrainian SSR
The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, abbreviated as the Ukrainian SSR, UkrSSR, and also known as Soviet Ukraine or just Ukraine, was one of the Republics of the Soviet Union, constituent republics of the Soviet Union from 1922 until 1991. ...
group) of the ''Class A, group 2''. The team won its group next year and entered the league finals, finishing second. In 1970, the league system was reformed and Dnipro entered the newly created ''Class A, group 1'' (later renamed to ''Soviet First League''), which the team won the following year, moving to the Top League
Japan Rugby League One (), formerly known as the Top League (), is a rugby union competition in Japan. It is the highest level of professional rugby competition in the country. The Japan Rugby Football Union created the competition in 2003, by ...
. In its first season at the highest level, the club ended up sixth, one point away from silver medals.
Dynamo Kyiv (1973–1982), Soviet Union national team (1975–1976, 1982–1983)
Lobanovskyi moved to his former club, Dynamo Kyiv, who were impressed by his accomplishments with Dnipro, in October 1973. In January 1974 he was joined by his former teammate, Oleh Bazylevych. These two would work as a coaching duo until October 1976. Both managers had equal rights: Bazylevych was a theorist, and Lobanovskyi was in charge of the training process. During their first season, the Soviet press often criticized them for rationalism
In philosophy, rationalism is the Epistemology, epistemological view that "regards reason as the chief source and test of knowledge" or "the position that reason has precedence over other ways of acquiring knowledge", often in contrast to ot ...
and unwillingness to play attacking football (the so-called ''away model'' — the team would play away games defensively to score a draw). In that season, the team won both the league and Soviet Cup.
Both Lobanovskyi and Bazylevych understood the importance of accurate calculation of the physical load on players. With cooperation from Anatoly Zelentsov, a scientist from the department of physical education theory of Kyiv State Institute of Physical Education, Lobanovskyi brought a system of calculation of the training process and mathematical modeling of physical load for the team. Zelentsov later headed Dynamo Kyiv's scientific laboratory, which was popularly called ''the Zelentsov Center''. Lobanovskyi was credited for inventing a style of play in which any outfield player can take over the role of any other player in a team, similarly to what was practiced by Rinus Michels
Marinus Jacobus Hendricus "Rinus" Michels (; 9 February 1928 – 3 March 2005) was a Dutch Association football, football player and coach. He list of one-club men in association football, played his entire career for AFC Ajax, Ajax, which he ...
at the same time in Netherlands. Unlike Michels, however, Lobanovskyi was developing his style of play scientifically, with a strong emphasis on pressing.
In 1975, Dynamo Kyiv won the European Cup Winners' Cup
The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European association football, football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The competition's official name was originally the European Cup Winners' Cup; it was renam ...
and then-highly regarded European Super Cup
The UEFA Super Cup is an annual super cup football match organised by UEFA and contested by the winners of the two main European club competitions: the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League. The competition's official name was original ...
. Dynamo Kyiv became the first Soviet club to win a major European trophy. In the first three rounds of Cup Winners' Cup, the team defeated CSKA Sofia
CSKA Sofia () is a Bulgarian professional association football club based in Sofia and currently competing in the country's premier football competition, the First League. ''CSKA'' is an abbreviation for ''Central Sports Club of the Army'' ...
, Eintracht Frankfurt
Eintracht Frankfurt e.V. () is a German professional sports club based in Frankfurt, Hesse. It is best known for its football club, which was founded on 8 March 1899. The club currently plays in the Bundesliga, the top tier of the German footb ...
and Bursaspor
Bursaspor Kulübü Derneği, commonly known as Bursaspor, is a Turkey, Turkish professional sports club based in the city of Bursa. Founded in 1963, the club is best known for its football team, which has a rich history in Football in Turkey, Turk ...
, winning all home and away games. In semifinals, Dynamo faced the 1974–75 Eredivisie
The Dutch Eredivisie in the 1974–75 season was contested by 18 teams. PSV won the championship.
League standings
Results
See also
* 1974–75 Eerste Divisie
* 1974–75 KNVB Cup
References
Eredivisie official website - info on all s ...
winner, PSV Eindhoven
Philips Sport Vereniging (; ), abbreviated as PSV and internationally known as PSV Eindhoven (), is a Dutch sports club from Eindhoven, Netherlands. It is best known for its professional association football, football department, which has pla ...
. The Dutch club was considered one of the most powerful in Europe, being sponsored by Philips
Koninklijke Philips N.V. (), simply branded Philips, is a Dutch multinational health technology company that was founded in Eindhoven in 1891. Since 1997, its world headquarters have been situated in Amsterdam, though the Benelux headquarter ...
. The first leg played in Kyiv
Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...
ended up 3–0 in favor of Lobanovskyi's team. After losing 1–2 in the second leg, Dynamo Kyiv moved to the final. On 14 May 1975, Dynamo Kyiv won Cup Winners' Cup for the first time, defeating Ferencváros
Ferencváros (, ) is the 9th district of Budapest (), Hungary.
Name
The southern suburb of Pest was named after King Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor, Francis I on 4 December 1792 when he was crowned king of Hungary.
History
The developmen ...
3–0 in the final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final examination or finals, a test given at the end of a course of study or training
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which d ...
. During the tournament, the team won 88.88% of its matches (8 games out of 9), which remained the best winning record among all European main tournaments' winning club sides until 2019–20 season when Bayern Munich won all its matches on its way to the Champions League trophy.
In the autumn of that year, Dynamo Kyiv faced the 1974–75 European Cup
The 1974–75 season was the 20th season of the European Cup, an annual football tournament for the champion clubs of the member nations of UEFA (the Union of European Football Associations). It was won for the second consecutive time by Bayer ...
winner Bayern Munich
Fußball-Club Bayern München e. V. (FCB, ), commonly known as Bayern Munich (), FC Bayern () or simply Bayern, is a German professional sports club based in Munich, Bavaria. They are most known for their men's professional football team, ...
for the second ever European Super Cup
The UEFA Super Cup is an annual super cup football match organised by UEFA and contested by the winners of the two main European club competitions: the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League. The competition's official name was original ...
. Besides winning a consecutive European Cup, Bayern was also the base club for the 1974 World Cup winners. The build-up to the match had a political background, mainly in USSR. The Soviet Ukrainian club won both games, 1–0 in Munich
Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...
and 2–0 in Kyiv
Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...
in front of 100,000 fans. All goals were scored by Oleg Blokhin
Oleg Vladimirovich Blokhin, or Oleh Volodymyrovych Blokhin (, ; born 5 November 1952), is a Ukrainian former football player and manager. Regarded as one of the greatest footballers of his generation, Blokhin was a standout striker for Dynamo ...
who would become Ballon d'Or
The Ballon d'Or (; ) is an annual association football, football award presented by French magazine ''France Football'' since 1956 Ballon d'Or, 1956 to honour the player deemed to have performed the best over the previous season.
Conceived ...
winner that year. The Lobanovskyi—Bazylevych duo received the World Sports Coach of the Year award.
The Lobanovskyi–Bazylevych duo was appointed managers of the Soviet national team in 1975, after the team lost its first game in the Euro qualifying group to Ireland
Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...
3–0. Dynamo Kyiv became the base club of the national team. Despite Lobanovskyi's demands to reorganize national league to autumn-spring format, the USSR Football Federation
The Football Federation of the USSR () was a governing body of football in the Soviet Union and since 1972 the main governing body of football in the country. The Federation was created in late 1934 by the decision of the '' Supreme Council of P ...
split 1976 into two seasons ( spring and autumn).
Before 1976 season, Lobanovskyi and Bazylevych were pressured by the Moscow officials to accept the Moscow-based Mark Godik as the professional fitness coach to prepare the team for European Cup
The UEFA Champions League (UCL) is an annual club association football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) that is contested by top-division European clubs. The competition begins with a round robi ...
, Euro qualification and 1976 Summer Olympics
The 1976 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXI Olympiad () and officially branded as Montreal 1976 (), were an international multi-sport event held from July 17 to August 1, 1976, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Montreal ...
. The duo was forced to move the training camp to the mountains where the atmospheric pressure
Atmospheric pressure, also known as air pressure or barometric pressure (after the barometer), is the pressure within the atmosphere of Earth. The standard atmosphere (symbol: atm) is a unit of pressure defined as , which is equivalent to 1,013. ...
was much higher and the oxygen levels were lower, all while maintaining the same indicators of the intensity of training. The training process was unbalanced, while basic correlation of aerobic
Aerobic means "requiring air," in which "air" usually means oxygen.
Aerobic may also refer to
* Aerobic exercise, prolonged exercise of moderate intensity
* Aerobics, a form of aerobic exercise
* Aerobic respiration, the aerobic process of cellu ...
and anaerobic exercise
Anaerobic exercise is a type of exercise that breaks down glucose in the body without using oxygen; ''anaerobic'' means "without oxygen". This type of exercise leads to a buildup of lactic acid.
In practical terms, this means that anaerobic exe ...
s was also butchered. Many players struggled during the training process, some players' measured pulses were above 200 beats per minute.
The club competed in the "spring" season mostly with B-squad, as the first team was able to concentrate on their preparation for the three international tournaments. Dynamo Kyiv left the European Cup after quarterfinals, losing to Saint-Étienne
Saint-Étienne (; Franco-Provençal: ''Sant-Etiève''), also written St. Etienne, is a city and the prefecture of the Loire département, in eastern-central France, in the Massif Central, southwest of Lyon, in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes regi ...
(2–0 in Kyiv and 0–3 in France). The national team won its qualifying group but lost to Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...
in play-offs, thus failing to qualify at the European championship. After winning bronze medal
A bronze medal in sports and other similar areas involving competition is a medal made of bronze awarded to the third-place finisher of contests or competitions such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, etc. The outright winner receives ...
at the Summer Olympic Games, the coaching duo left the national team.
In the summer of 1976, after a conflict between Kyiv's players and managerial stuff, Oleh Bazylevych left the team. In 1977
Events January
* January 8 – 1977 Moscow bombings, Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group.
* January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (no ...
Dynamo Kyiv regained the USSR championship, losing once in 30 games, and reached semifinals of the European Cup
The UEFA Champions League (UCL) is an annual club association football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) that is contested by top-division European clubs. The competition begins with a round robi ...
. After winning all games on the road to quarterfinals, Lobanovskyi's side faced Bayern Munich
Fußball-Club Bayern München e. V. (FCB, ), commonly known as Bayern Munich (), FC Bayern () or simply Bayern, is a German professional sports club based in Munich, Bavaria. They are most known for their men's professional football team, ...
, the winner of the last three European Cups, for the second time in the last two years. After losing 1–0 in Munich
Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...
, Kyiv's team scored two unanswered goals in the last 10 minutes of the second leg, moving to semifinals and ending Bayern's European dominance. In semifinals, however, Dynamo Kyiv was beaten by another German club, Borussia Mönchengladbach
Borussia Verein für Leibesübungen 1900 e.V. Mönchengladbach, better known as Borussia Mönchengladbach () and colloquially known as just Gladbach, is a professional Association football, football club based in Mönchengladbach, North Rhine-W ...
.
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Dynamo was going through generational change
A generation gap or generational gap is a difference of opinions and outlooks between one generation and another. These differences may relate to beliefs, politics, language, work, demographics and values. The differences between generations can ...
. After finishing second and third in the following two years, the team won back-to-back USSR titles in 1980
Events January
* January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a United States grain embargo against the Soviet Union, grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission.
* January 6 – Global Positioning Sys ...
and 1981
Events January
* January 1
** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union.
** Palau becomes a self-governing territory.
* January 6 – A funeral service is held in West Germany for Nazi Grand Admiral ...
. Lobanovskyi led Dynamo Kyiv to European Cup quarter-finals in 1981
Events January
* January 1
** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union.
** Palau becomes a self-governing territory.
* January 6 – A funeral service is held in West Germany for Nazi Grand Admiral ...
and 1982
Events
January
* January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00).
* January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street Bridge in Washington, D.C. ...
, before leaving the team at the end of 1982 in order to return to managing Soviet national team, being in charge of it during Euro qualification. The team was leading its qualifying group before losing their last match against Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...
in Lisbon, conceding the only goal after an incorrectly ruled penalty (the foul happened outside of the penalty area). Lobanovskyi was sacked again.
Return to Dynamo Kyiv (1984–1986)
After being sacked by Soviet national team, Lobanovskyi returned to Dynamo Kyiv after just one year of absence. The club, having been led by Yury Morozov in 1983, ended up seventh in the league, the lowest since the spring of 1976, when Kyiv was represented mostly by B-squad. The team was going through crisis, with many key players injured. Dynamo Kyiv finished the 1984
Events
January
* January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888.
* January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...
season on tenth place, failing to qualify at UEFA tournaments for the first time in 14 years.
Lobanovskyi saw the problems and knew how to solve them. The coach received team's support. Lobanovskyi's side started the 1985
The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1
** The Internet's Domain Name System is created.
** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a n ...
season very strongly and in the end captured another Soviet double, defeating their biggest rival, Spartak Moscow, twice throughout the season.
In 1986, Dynamo Kyiv won their second Cup Winners' Cup
The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The competition's official name was originally the European Cup Winners' Cup; it was renamed the UEFA Cup Winne ...
. The team lost the first game to Utrecht
Utrecht ( ; ; ) is the List of cities in the Netherlands by province, fourth-largest city of the Netherlands, as well as the capital and the most populous city of the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of Utrecht (province), Utrecht. The ...
but then went on an impressive undefeated streak, winning six games and drawing two with a goal difference 25–6. Throughout the tournament, Lobanovskyi's side won all home games (and final) with at least three goals difference. On the road to the final, the team defeated Rapid Wien
Sportklub Rapid (), commonly known as Rapid Wien or Rapid Vienna in English, is an Austrian professional football club playing in the country's capital city of Vienna. Rapid has won the most Austrian championship titles (32), including the f ...
, the runner-up of the previous Cup Winners' Cup edition, 9–2 on aggregate in quarterfinals and Dukla Prague
Dukla Prague () was a Czech football club from the city of Prague. Established in 1948 as ATK Praha, the club won a total of 11 Czechoslovak league titles and eight Czechoslovak Cups, and in the 1966–67 season, reached the semi-finals of the ...
in semifinals. In the final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final examination or finals, a test given at the end of a course of study or training
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which d ...
, Dynamo beat Atletico Madrid, led by Luis Aragones
Luis is a given name. It is the Spanish form of the originally Germanic name or . Other Iberian Romance languages have comparable forms: (with an accent mark on the i) in Portuguese and Galician, in Aragonese and Catalan, while is archaic ...
, 3–0. The second goal, scored by Oleg Blokhin
Oleg Vladimirovich Blokhin, or Oleh Volodymyrovych Blokhin (, ; born 5 November 1952), is a Ukrainian former football player and manager. Regarded as one of the greatest footballers of his generation, Blokhin was a standout striker for Dynamo ...
, was especially memorable, as it was scored after the so-called "fan attack". Lobanovskyi's side was widely praised by the Soviet
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
and European media. Many observers, fascinated by the quality of football shown by Dynamo Kyiv, called their style of play "football of the 21st century", and the side was labeled as "the team from another planet".
Co-managing Dynamo Kyiv and Soviet Union national team again (1986–1990)
Following success with Dynamo Kyiv in Cup Winners' Cup, Lobanovskyi was appointed manager of the national team for the third time. He was asked to manage the side on the eve of the 1986 World Cup
The 1986 FIFA World Cup was the 13th FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial football tournament for men's senior national teams. It was played in Mexico from 31 May to 29 June 1986. The tournament was the second to feature a 24-team format. Colombia had ...
. The main squad consisted almost exclusively of Dynamo Kyiv's players. In the group stage, Soviet players destroyed Hungary
Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...
, scoring six unanswered goals, and drew with European champions, France, 1–1. The team confirmed the first place in the group by defeating Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
2–0 with a B-squad. After an impressive performance, Lobanovskyi's side were predicted to be one of the favourites to win the tournament. In the first game of the knockout stage, however, Soviet team lost to Belgium
Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...
in an extra-time, after Belgium scored two goals due to referee's mistakes.
At the conclusion of 1986 season, Dynamo Kyiv won the Soviet Top League
The Soviet Top League, known after 1970 as the Higher League (), served as the top division (tier) of Soviet Union football from 1936 until 1991. The league's name was a conditional designation used for brevity since being completely owned and g ...
for the 12th time (7th time during Lobanovskyi's time in charge of the club). Igor Belanov was rewarded with Ballon d'Or
The Ballon d'Or (; ) is an annual association football, football award presented by French magazine ''France Football'' since 1956 Ballon d'Or, 1956 to honour the player deemed to have performed the best over the previous season.
Conceived ...
, becoming the second Kyiv's player to receive the award, while Oleksandr Zavarov
Oleksandr Anatoliyovych Zavarov (; born 26 April 1961) is a Ukrainian former footballer and the former head coach of FC Arsenal Kyiv. He became first among Soviets footballers who got transferred to West European world class club when he was pi ...
ended up 6th. Overall, Dynamo Kyiv's players scored the most points during the award's voting process, just as they did in 1975
It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe.
Events
January
* January 1 – Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...
.
In 1987, after defeating Beşiktaş
Beşiktaş () is a district and municipality of Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its area is 18 km2 and its population is 175,190 (2022). It is located on the European shore of the Bosphorus strait. It is bordered on the north by Sarıyer and ...
twice in European Cup
The UEFA Champions League (UCL) is an annual club association football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) that is contested by top-division European clubs. The competition begins with a round robi ...
quarterfinals, Dynamo Kyiv extended their unbeaten streak in main UEFA
The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; ; ) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs football, futsal and beach soccer, beach football in Europe and the List of transcontinental countries#A ...
club tournaments to 14 games, the longest unbeaten streak at the time. In the league Dynamo finished sixth but won the Soviet Cup
The Soviet Cup, or USSR Cup (),, , , (Moldovan Cyrillic: Купа УРСС), , , . was the premier football cup competition in the Soviet Union conducted by the Football Federation of the Soviet Union. The 1991–92 season of the tournam ...
and prestigious Dynamo Games of the USSR. Meanwhile, the Soviet team won its Euro 1988 qualifying group which consisted of East Germany
East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from Foundation of East Germany, its formation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on ...
and defending champions, France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
, as ''sbornaja'' famously defeated them 0–2 in Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
.
The national team achieved great success at the 1988 European Championship, winning silver medals. In every game, at least seven players of the starting line-up represented Dynamo Kyiv and at least eight Kyiv players entered the field (substitutions including; only two were allowed at the time). ''Sbornaja'' won its group, defeating Netherlands
, Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...
and England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
and drawing with Ireland
Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...
. In semifinals, Lobanovskyi's side defeated Italy
Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
, after Hennadiy Lytovchenko
Hennadiy Volodymyrovych Lytovchenko (; , ''Gennadiy Vladimirovich Litovchenko''; born 11 September 1963) is a Ukrainian football coach and former player who played as a midfielder. He was a member of the Soviet squad that finished runners-up at ...
and Oleh Protasov
Oleh Valeriyovych Protasov (; born 4 February 1964) is a Ukrainian and Soviet former footballer who played as a striker. He was a key member of the Soviet Union national team throughout the 1980s; his 28 goals for the Soviet Union are second ...
(both Dynamo Kyiv's representatives) scored two unanswered goals. In the final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final examination or finals, a test given at the end of a course of study or training
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which d ...
, Soviet team met Netherlands again but was unable to repeat their previous victory from the group stage, losing 0–2. Van Basten's goal, in which he volleyed right-footed over Rinat Dasayev
Rinat Fayzrakhmanovich Dasayev (, ; born 13 June 1957) is a Russian football coach and a former goalkeeper.
Throughout his club career, he played for Volgar Astrakhan, Spartak Moscow and Sevilla. At international level, he played at three Wo ...
from the tightest of angles on the right of the penalty area, would later be described as one of the greatest goals in the history of the European Championships
A European Championship is the top level international sports competition between European athletes or sports teams representing their respective countries or professional sports clubs.
In the plural, the European Championships also refers t ...
.
Following perestroika
''Perestroika'' ( ; rus, перестройка, r=perestrojka, p=pʲɪrʲɪˈstrojkə, a=ru-perestroika.ogg, links=no) was a political reform movement within the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) during the late 1980s, widely associ ...
, many of Lobanovskyi's best players left the USSR to play in Western Europe
Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's extent varies depending on context.
The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the Western half of the ancient Mediterranean ...
. Going into the 1990 World Cup
The 1990 FIFA World Cup was the 14th FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial Association football, football tournament for men's senior national teams. It was held from 8 June to 8 July 1990 in Italy, the second country to host the event for a second ...
he could not call upon the best Soviet players. As a result, ''sbornaja'' finished on the bottom of their group. In the same year, which happened to be the final year of Lobanovskyi's career in Soviet Union, Dynamo Kyiv, which was going through generational change, won their fourth Soviet double. The team cemented first place in the Top League
Japan Rugby League One (), formerly known as the Top League (), is a rugby union competition in Japan. It is the highest level of professional rugby competition in the country. The Japan Rugby Football Union created the competition in 2003, by ...
weeks before the end, winning its 13th league title and establishing themselves as the most successful Soviet football club of all time. In the Cup final, Lobanovskyi's team destroyed Lokomotiv Moscow
FC Lokomotiv Moscow (, ) is a Russian professional association football, football club based in Moscow. Lokomotiv have won the Russian Premier League on three occasions; the Soviet Cup twice; and the Russian Cup (football), Russian Cup a record ...
6–1. In the autumn of 1990, Lobanovskyi left Soviet Union in order to take a lucrative offer from United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a Federal monarchy, federal elective monarchy made up of Emirates of the United Arab E ...
.
Middle East (1990–1996)
In September 1990, Lobanovskyi decided to leave Soviet Union and take up a lucrative offer of managing the United Arab Emirates national football team
The United Arab Emirates national football team () represents United Arab Emirates in men's international Association football, football and serves under the auspices of the country's United Arab Emirates Football Association, Football Associat ...
. Lobanovskyi is recognized as one of the great managers in the history of the national team. During his four year tenure, the team ended up fourth at the Asian Cup
The AFC Asian Cup is the primary association football competition contested by the senior list of men's national association football teams, men's national teams of the members of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), determining the contin ...
(losing bronze medal to South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...
in a penalty shootout), its best finish up to that date. He left Emirates due to a conflict with Emirates football federation and went on to spend the next two years managing the Kuwait national football team
The Kuwait national football team () represents Kuwait in international football and it is controlled by the Kuwait Football Association. Kuwait made its only FIFA World Cup appearance in 1982 and managed to get one draw in the group stage agai ...
(winning a bronze medal at the Asian Games
The Asian Games, also known as Asiad, is a continental multi-sport event held every four years for athletes of Asia. The Games were regulated by Asian Games Federation from the 1951 Asian Games, first Games in New Delhi, India in 1951, until ...
), before agreeing to return to Dynamo Kyiv in November 1996.
Third stint at Dynamo Kyiv (1997–2002)
In January 1997, Lobanovskyi returned to manage Dynamo Kyiv for the third time. The club by this time had fallen somewhat from their former heights. The club had been facing little opposition in Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...
but had little success in European competitions, having been able to enter the Champions League first round only twice in the last five years. During its last European campaign before Lobanovsky's return, the team failed to qualify at the group stage of Champions League and was beaten by Neuchâtel Xamax
Neuchâtel (, ; ; ) is a town, a municipality, and the capital of the Swiss canton of Neuchâtel on Lake Neuchâtel. Since the fusion in 2021 of the municipalities of Neuchâtel, Corcelles-Cormondrèche, Peseux, and Valangin, the city has ap ...
in the first round of the UEFA Cup
The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a Typography, typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a star (heraldry), heraldic star.
Computer scientists and Mathematici ...
.
Within a month after Lobanovskyi's return, the team won the 1997 edition of the CIS Cup
The Commonwealth of Independent States Cup () is a defunct annual regional association football tournament, recognized by FIFA.
The tournament was initially established for football clubs of the former Soviet Union republics in 1993 (a year late ...
, defeating its biggest rival, Russian champion Spartak Moscow, in the final. The team won the 1996-97 Ukrainian league with 11 points gap against the second best team, Shakhtar Donetsk
Football Club Shakhtar Donetsk () is a Ukrainian professional Association football, football club that was based in the city of Donetsk until 2014 when, due to the War in Donbas (2014–2022), War in Donbas, the club was forced to move to Lvi ...
. At the start of the 1997–98 season, Dynamo Kyiv defeated Brøndby in the qualifying round of the Champions League and entered the group stage. Lobanovskyi's team were seeded against FC Barcelona
Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly known as FC Barcelona and colloquially as Barça (), is a professional Football club (association football), football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of ...
, Newcastle United
Newcastle United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. Since th ...
and PSV Eindhoven
Philips Sport Vereniging (; ), abbreviated as PSV and internationally known as PSV Eindhoven (), is a Dutch sports club from Eindhoven, Netherlands. It is best known for its professional association football, football department, which has pla ...
. The group was often described as the ''death group'' of the tournament. In the first two games, however, the team defeated PSV 1–3 in Eindhoven
Eindhoven ( ; ) is a city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality of the Netherlands, located in the southern Provinces of the Netherlands, province of North Brabant, of which it is the largest municipality, and is also locat ...
and drew with Newcastle. After that, Lobanovskyi's side defeated Barcelona
Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
, a generally recognized favourite, 3–0 in Kyiv
Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...
in front of 100,000 fans. In the rematch two weeks later the Spanish team, which were coming off of an away victory against Real Madrid
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional Football club (association football), football club based in Madrid. The club competes in La Liga, th ...
and were leading La Liga
The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known as the Primera División or La Liga, and officially known as LaLiga EA Sports for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Spain and the highest ...
, lost the home game to Dynamo Kyiv 0–4, with Andriy Shevchenko
Andriy Mykolayovych Shevchenko (, ; born 29 September 1976) is a Ukrainian former Manager (association football), football manager and Football player, player. Shevchenko is considered one of the greatest Striker (association football), strik ...
scoring hat-trick in the first half. The Ukrainian team won their group after drawing with PSV 1–1. In quarterfinals, Dynamo faced Juventus
Juventus Football Club (; from , ), commonly known as Juventus or colloquially as Juve (), is an Italian professional Association football, football List of football clubs in Italy, club based in Turin, Piedmont, who compete in Serie A, the ...
. Lobanovskyi's side were able to draw the first game in Italy but were outclassed 1–4 in Ukraine. On the domestic field, the team won the league and Ukrainian Cup.
At the start of the 1998–99 season, Dynamo struggled to get through qualification. After beating Barry Town with an aggregate score 9–1, the team moved to the Champions League group stage after defeating Sparta Prague
Athletic Club Sparta Praha (), commonly known as Sparta Prague and Sparta Praha, is a professional football club based in Prague.
It is the most successful club in the Czech Republic and one of the most successful in central Europe, winning t ...
in a penalty shootout when both games ended 1–0 in favor of the away team. Dynamo were seeded against Arsenal
An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
, Racing Lens and Panathinaikos. The team lost its first game to Panathinaikos in Greece
Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...
and then drew the home match with Lens, 1–1. Lobanovskyi's side then faced Arsenal at Wembley Stadium
Wembley Stadium, currently branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE Limited, EE for sponsorship reasons, is an association football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Sta ...
. In the second half, Andriy Shevchenko
Andriy Mykolayovych Shevchenko (, ; born 29 September 1976) is a Ukrainian former Manager (association football), football manager and Football player, player. Shevchenko is considered one of the greatest Striker (association football), strik ...
scored a goal that was cancelled due to offside. The replay, however, showed that the goal was valid. Instead, Dennis Bergkamp
Dennis Nicolaas Maria Bergkamp (; born 10 May 1969) is a Dutch professional Association football, football coach and former Football player, player who was most recently the Assistant manager of Ajax. Originally a wide midfielder, Bergkamp was ...
took Arsenal to the lead in the 72nd minute. In the 88th minute, Dynamo equalised after a strike from Serhiy Rebrov
Serhiy Stanislavovych Rebrov (; born 3 June 1974) is a Ukrainian professional Manager (association football), football manager and former Football player, player who played as a striker (association football), striker. He is currently the manage ...
to the left corner of the net, and the match finished as a 1–1 draw. In the rematch against Arsenal two weeks later, Lobanovskyi's team won after Serhiy Rebrov
Serhiy Stanislavovych Rebrov (; born 3 June 1974) is a Ukrainian professional Manager (association football), football manager and former Football player, player who played as a striker (association football), striker. He is currently the manage ...
, Oleksandr Holovko
Oleksandr Borysovych Holovko (; born 6 January 1972) is a Ukrainian association football, football manager and former player who manages FC Dinaz Vyshhorod, Dinaz Vyshhorod. A centre-back, Holovko used to be a regular starter for the Ukraine na ...
and Andriy Shevchenko
Andriy Mykolayovych Shevchenko (, ; born 29 September 1976) is a Ukrainian former Manager (association football), football manager and Football player, player. Shevchenko is considered one of the greatest Striker (association football), strik ...
took the team to the 3–0 lead and Stephen Hughes scored the only goal for Arsenal in the 82nd minute of the match. Dynamo then defeated Panathinaikos in Kyiv
Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...
thanks to an own goal from Angelos Basinas. Before the final match, Dynamo, Panathinaikos and Racing Lens had 8 points, while Arsenal earned only 6 points. Panathinaikos lost the home game to Arsenal while the Ukrainian team was able to earn a 3–1 victory against Lens in France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
, win their group and move to quarter-finals.
In the play-offs, Lobanovskyi's team were seeded against the defending champions, Real Madrid
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional Football club (association football), football club based in Madrid. The club competes in La Liga, th ...
. The first match at Santiago Bernabéu Stadium
Santiago Bernabéu Stadium (, ) is a retractable roof association football, football stadium in Madrid, Spain. With a seating capacity of around 83,000 following its extensive renovation completed in late 2024, the stadium has the second-largest ...
ended in a 1–1 draw. In the rematch in Kyiv, Dynamo won 2–0. All Kyiv's goals were scored by Andriy Shevchenko
Andriy Mykolayovych Shevchenko (, ; born 29 September 1976) is a Ukrainian former Manager (association football), football manager and Football player, player. Shevchenko is considered one of the greatest Striker (association football), strik ...
. To this day, Dynamo Kyiv remains the only team not from The Big 5 Leagues, Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...
and Netherlands
, Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...
to enter the Champions League semi-finals since non-champions of the top European leagues were eligible to compete in the competition for the first time. In semi-finals, the team faced Bayern Munich
Fußball-Club Bayern München e. V. (FCB, ), commonly known as Bayern Munich (), FC Bayern () or simply Bayern, is a German professional sports club based in Munich, Bavaria. They are most known for their men's professional football team, ...
. In the first match in Ukraine, Dynamo were leading 3–1 after fifty minutes of the playing time and missed at least two promising opportunities to score the fourth goal. Instead, Stefan Effenberg
Stefan Effenberg (; born 2 August 1968) is a German former footballer who most recently acted as sporting director for KFC Uerdingen 05. A midfielder, he was known for his leadership skills, passing range, shooting ability, and physical strengt ...
reduced Kyiv's lead and Carsten Jancker equalised in the 88th minute. Bayern then won the second leg 1–0 and moved to the final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final examination or finals, a test given at the end of a course of study or training
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which d ...
. Andriy Shevchenko
Andriy Mykolayovych Shevchenko (, ; born 29 September 1976) is a Ukrainian former Manager (association football), football manager and Football player, player. Shevchenko is considered one of the greatest Striker (association football), strik ...
became Champions League's top goalscorer and received the UEFA Club Forward Of The Year award. Shevchenko also ended up third in the 1999 Ballon d'Or voting process.
In the summer of 1999, Shevchenko was sold to AC Milan
(), commonly referred to as Milan or AC Milan () mainly outside of Italy, is an Italian professional Football club (association football), football club based in Milan, Lombardy. Founded in 1899, the club competes in the Serie A, the top tie ...
, while the team's captain Oleh Luzhnyi
Oleh Romanovych Luzhnyi (; born 5 August 1968) is a Ukrainian former professional footballer who played as a right-back.
Club career
Luzhnyi is a product of the Karpaty sports school (coached by Yuriy Hdanskyi and Yuriy Dyachuk-Stavytskyi) an ...
was transferred to Arsenal
An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
. Dynamo won the domestic double for the third consecutive season and ended their Champions League campaign in the second group stage. The team was able to finish second in the first group stage, in a group which consisted of S.S. Lazio
(; ; ''Lazio Sport Club'') is an Italian professional sports club based in Rome, most known for its football activity. The society, founded in 1900, plays in the Serie A and have spent most of their history in the top tier of Italian footba ...
, Bayer Leverkusen
Bayer 04 Leverkusen, officially known as Bayer 04 Leverkusen Fußball GmbH () and commonly known as Bayer Leverkusen or simply Leverkusen, is a German professional football club based in Leverkusen, North Rhine-Westphalia. It competes in the B ...
and Maribor
Maribor ( , , ; also known by other #Name, historical names) is the List of cities and towns in Slovenia, second-largest city in Slovenia and the largest city of the traditional region of Styria (Slovenia), Lower Styria. It is the seat of the ...
, but ended up third behind Bayern Munich
Fußball-Club Bayern München e. V. (FCB, ), commonly known as Bayern Munich (), FC Bayern () or simply Bayern, is a German professional sports club based in Munich, Bavaria. They are most known for their men's professional football team, ...
and Real Madrid
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional Football club (association football), football club based in Madrid. The club competes in La Liga, th ...
in the next round, having earned 10 points.
Afterwards, Dynamo's second forward, Serhii Rebrov, was sold to Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as simply Tottenham (, , , ) or Spurs, is a professional Association football, football club based in Tottenham, North London, England. The club itself has stated that it should always ...
and Kakha Kaladze
Kakhaber "Kakha" Kaladze ( ka, კახაბერ "კახა" კალაძე, ; born 27 February 1978) is a Georgian politician and former footballer who has served as the Mayor of Tbilisi since November 2017. A versatile player, he ...
was bought by AC Milan
(), commonly referred to as Milan or AC Milan () mainly outside of Italy, is an Italian professional Football club (association football), football club based in Milan, Lombardy. Founded in 1899, the club competes in the Serie A, the top tie ...
. With many key players sold, Dynamo Kyiv, which were also going through generational change, was not able to go past the first group stage in the next two seasons. Lobanovskyi won his last trophy in January 2002, when the team won its fourth CIS Cup
The Commonwealth of Independent States Cup () is a defunct annual regional association football tournament, recognized by FIFA.
The tournament was initially established for football clubs of the former Soviet Union republics in 1993 (a year late ...
, having entered the A-squad for the tournament for the first time since 1998. The team won all matches in the competition, defeating Spartak Moscow 4–3 in the final.
Lobanovskyi was appointed manager of the Ukraine national side in March 2000. Once again he was co-managing Dynamo Kyiv and the national team. Lobanovskyi left Ukraine national team after the side failed to qualify for the 2002 World Cup
The 2002 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Korea/Japan 2002, was the 17th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial Association football, football world championship for List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams organized by ...
, losing to Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
in the play-offs.
Under his predecessor Yozhef Sabo
Yozhef Yozhefovich Sabo (; ; born 29 February 1940) is a Ukrainian former football player and manager.
Club career
Sabo began to play in 1954 for a team of Uzhhorod bread factory and his first coach was Zoltan Gyorfi (). Later until August ...
, the national squad consisted almost exclusively of Dynamo Kyiv players. Lobanovskyi, despite his own obvious connection with Dynamo, initiated into the national squad many players outside of Dynamo. Anatoliy Tymoshchuk
Anatoliy Oleksandrovych Tymoshchuk ( , ; born 30 March 1979) is a Ukrainian association football, football coach and former midfielder. Since 2017, he has served as an assistant coach of the Russian Premier League club FC Zenit Saint Petersburg ...
and Andriy Vorobey
Andriy Oleksiyovych Vorobey (; born 29 November 1978) is a Ukrainian former professional footballer who played as a striker. He was a three times national champion while playing for FC Shakhtar Donetsk. In 2000 the magazine Komanda recognized ...
(from Shakhtar Donetsk), Dmytro Parfenov and Maksym Kalynychenko (from Spartak Moscow), Oleksandr Spivak (from Zenit St. Petersburg), Volodymyr Yezerskiy
Volodymyr Ivanovych Yezerskiy (; born 15 November 1976) is a former professional Ukrainian football defender. He also played for the Ukraine national team from 1998 till 2008. Yezerskiy is a Distinguished Master of Sports (2005).
Career
Clu ...
(from Dnipro) and Andriy Voronin
Andriy Viktorovych Voronin (; Russian: Андрей Викторович Воронин, born 21 July 1979) is a Ukrainian professional football manager and a former player.
Voronin spent five full seasons in the Bundesliga of Germany, and las ...
(from Mainz
Mainz (; #Names and etymology, see below) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, and with around 223,000 inhabitants, it is List of cities in Germany by population, Germany's 35th-largest city. It lies in ...
) were all either initiated or given their first starting spots in the national team during his tenure. Together with the Dynamo generation of the late 1990s (Shevchenko, Rebrov, Husin, Vashchuk, Shovkovskyi) these players were to form, after Lobanovskyi's death, the core of the team that reached the 2006 World Cup
The 2006 FIFA World Cup was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to host the event in July 2000. Teams represe ...
quarter-finals – the first and only time Ukraine has ever qualified at the World Cup – managed by Oleh Blokhin
Oleg Vladimirovich Blokhin, or Oleh Volodymyrovych Blokhin (, ; born 5 November 1952), is a Ukrainian former association football, football player and manager. Regarded as one of the greatest footballers of his generation, Blokhin was a stando ...
who had worked under Lobanovskyi for 13 years as a Dynamo Kyiv and Soviet Union national team player.
Death
Lobanovskyi had to deal with health issues since 1988, when he suffered his first heart attack. Having come back from the Middle East in 1996, Lobanovskyi looked in a visibly worse shape. He suffered a second heart attack
A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...
in the autumn of 2001, which required surgery. In 2001, Lobanovskyi missed all away games of Dynamo Kyiv in Champions League due to hypertension
Hypertension, also known as high blood pressure, is a Chronic condition, long-term Disease, medical condition in which the blood pressure in the artery, arteries is persistently elevated. High blood pressure usually does not cause symptoms i ...
and being banned from travelling by air.
On 7 May 2002 during Dynamo Kyiv's game against FC Metalurh Zaporizhzhya
The Sports club "Metalurh Zaporizhzhia" (, ) is a Ukrainian professional football club based in Zaporizhzhia. Reestablished in 2017, it is a " phoenix club" of the original Soviet factory "team of masters" Metalurh that existed in 1935–2016 o ...
, Lobanovskyi fainted and was hospitalized with a stroke. Lobanovskyi went through a brain surgery and his health was rated as critical. The press, which regularly monitored Lobanovsky's state of health, wrote that there was hope, but Valeriy Lobanovskyi had not regained consciousness. His heart stopped on 13 May at 8:35 pm. At the Champions League final in Glasgow
Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...
two days later, UEFA
The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; ; ) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs football, futsal and beach soccer, beach football in Europe and the List of transcontinental countries#A ...
held a minute's silence in his honour.
Lobanovskyi's funeral on 14 May 2002 was attended by the President of Ukraine
The president of Ukraine (, ) is the head of state of Ukraine. The president represents the nation in international relations, administers the foreign political activity of the state, conducts negotiations and concludes international treaties. ...
Leonid Kuchma
Leonid Danylovych Kuchma (, ; born 9 August 1938) is a Ukrainian politician who was the second president of Ukraine, serving from 19 July 1994 to 23 January 2005. The only president of Ukraine to serve two terms, his presidency was marked by demo ...
, Ukraine's Prime Minister
A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...
Anatoliy Kinakh
Anatoliy Kyrylovych Kinakh (; born 4 August 1954) is a Ukrainian politician and honorary professor at the Mykolaiv Government Humanitarian University. Kinakh is a former (long serving) People's Deputy of Ukraine. Kinakh currently serves as the l ...
, other politicians, Lobanovskyi's former players Andriy Shevchenko
Andriy Mykolayovych Shevchenko (, ; born 29 September 1976) is a Ukrainian former Manager (association football), football manager and Football player, player. Shevchenko is considered one of the greatest Striker (association football), strik ...
, Oleh Blokhin
Oleg Vladimirovich Blokhin, or Oleh Volodymyrovych Blokhin (, ; born 5 November 1952), is a Ukrainian former association football, football player and manager. Regarded as one of the greatest footballers of his generation, Blokhin was a stando ...
, Igor Belanov, Oleksandr Zavarov
Oleksandr Anatoliyovych Zavarov (; born 26 April 1961) is a Ukrainian former footballer and the former head coach of FC Arsenal Kyiv. He became first among Soviets footballers who got transferred to West European world class club when he was pi ...
, Serhiy Rebrov
Serhiy Stanislavovych Rebrov (; born 3 June 1974) is a Ukrainian professional Manager (association football), football manager and former Football player, player who played as a striker (association football), striker. He is currently the manage ...
etc. In general, from 60.000 to 150.000 people attended the funeral.
Lobanovskyi was buried at Baikove Cemetery
Baikove Cemetery () is a historic cemetery memorial in Holosiivskyi District of Kyiv, Ukraine. It is a National Historic Monument of Ukraine and is known as a necropolis of distinguished people.
History
The cemetery was established in 1833 a ...
. The tombstone is adorned with a colonnade with the inscription in Russian ''We are alive as long as we are remembered'' (in original: ''Мы живы до тех пор, пока нас помнят'').
Management style and influence
Along with Rinus Michels
Marinus Jacobus Hendricus "Rinus" Michels (; 9 February 1928 – 3 March 2005) was a Dutch Association football, football player and coach. He list of one-club men in association football, played his entire career for AFC Ajax, Ajax, which he ...
, Lobanovskyi is recognized for being the inventor of the major football playing style known as "Total Football
Total Football () is a tactical system in association football in which any outfield player can take over the role of any other player in a team. A player who moves out of his position is replaced by another from his team, thus retaining the ...
" in the 1970s. Lobanovskyi often referred to ''Total Football'' as "gold vein" that would be exploited for many years to come.[Е. Шаинский. Возвращение. «Спорт-Экспресс журнал», № 2 за 1997 р., стр.62] According to Lobanovskyi, the "revolutionary process" in football ended in 1974 with the discovery of ''Total Football'', and in modern football, all players must be able to play in offense and defense equally effectively. Per Lobanovskyi, "Now we are talking about the so-called 'smart' universalization. What do I mean? Well, for example, we would not want Andriy Shevchenko
Andriy Mykolayovych Shevchenko (, ; born 29 September 1976) is a Ukrainian former Manager (association football), football manager and Football player, player. Shevchenko is considered one of the greatest Striker (association football), strik ...
, the striker, to play the right defender
In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield player whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring.
Defenders fall into four main categories: centre-backs, full-backs, sweepers ...
. But if he gets into this zone, he must be able to perform there. And in the future, football will gradually move from 'smart' universalization to full universalization".[
Lobanovskyi viewed football game as a system of 22 elements, divided into two sub-systems consisted of 11 elements – if the two sub-systems are equal, the game ends in a draw. The nuance that Lobanovsky considered the most interesting and important was that the efficiency of the subsystem will always be higher than the sum of the efficiencies of its individual elements.] Lobanovskyi insisted that the training process should be modeled, and fragments of future actions on the field should be practiced. According to Lobanovskyi, team coordination was an outdated concept – each player goes out and does what is needed at this time, and how he does this depends on his skill, training, and ability to express himself. But the structure of the game, tactics should not suffer from who acts as a performer in that particular moment.
Lobanovskyi is credited for bringing a scientific and analytical approach and strong emphasis on physical fitness and diet to the game. Many observers recognized Lobanovskyi as the first person to bring science into football, at the time when most managers used basic attributes in their training process. The media often referred to Lobanovskyi as "ahead of his time". With the cooperation with Anatoly Zelentsov, a scientist from the department of physical education theory of Kyiv State Institute of Physical Education, Lobanovskyi brought an accurate system of calculation of the training process and mathematical modeling of physical load for players. Zelentsov, viewed by many as unmistakably meticulous in his analysis, insisted that the team would not lose the match if, during the game, the number of key moments, during which the team made mistakes, would not exceed 18%.[ Many observers, players and managers credited Lobanovskyi's teams for being in great physical condition and being able to fulfill tactical ideas and perform certain operations almost on the level of automatism. Many observers described football played by Lobanovskyi's teams as "football from the future".]
A lot of people that worked alongside Lobanovskyi described him as a great psychologist
A psychologist is a professional who practices psychology and studies mental states, perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and social processes and behavior. Their work often involves the experimentation, observation, and explanation, interpretatio ...
. "A coach should always remember that he works with people, people that largely make the coach what he is now. And people, unlike robots, have a soul that is quite often very vulnerable, and sometimes obstinate", Lobanovskyi once said in an interview, "It's really important to know each player's personality and character. You can be more strict with one player and less strict with another, but for that you need to know their character. You must know which buttons to press to have each player bring as much benefit as possible". Stefan Reshko
Stefan Mykhaylovych Reshko (; born 24 March 1947) is a Ukrainian and Soviet former professional footballer
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football a ...
, who played for Dynamo Kyiv in the 70s, said: "Lobanovskyi was a top-notch psychologist. He had the ability to get the absolute best out of the players he worked with. Anatoliy Demyanenko, trained by Lobanovskyi during the 80s, described him as "a great psychologist. He knew how to communicate with each player. He knew when and to whom he needs to raise his voice, or not to say anything". Vasyl Kardash, who worked with Lobanovskyi during the late 90s and early 00s, said: "Lobanovskyi was a very good psychologist. His understanding of the psychology of a certain player – not just as a footballer, but as a human being – s one of the things thatmade him one of the great ones". Andriy Shevchenko
Andriy Mykolayovych Shevchenko (, ; born 29 September 1976) is a Ukrainian former Manager (association football), football manager and Football player, player. Shevchenko is considered one of the greatest Striker (association football), strik ...
often referred to Lobanovskyi as "paternal figure" in his life, claiming that Lobanovskiy "handed him the key" to a successful life: "Lobanovskyi rarely raised his voice. He never yelled at us, nor he ever tried to 'sort things out' with anyone. He was respected and admired by everyone around him". Renowned Indian manager Armando Colaco is highly influenced by Lobanovskyi and his style of coaching in Dynamo Kiev.
Many observers, players and managers credited Lobanovskyi for being able to always improve as a manager. One of the famous Lobanovskyi quotes was, "A coach must learn all his life. If hardened, stopped learning - that means, stopped being a coach". His ability to "stay in touch" with modern trends has been described as one of the reasons why he was able to build three great football teams in a span of three different decades – the 70s, 80s and 90s.
Tactics
Lobanovskyi placed emphasis on the collective or "the system". He said "A system does not guarantee success, but it gives a much better chance of success than making it up as you go along." Everything was meticulously planned, with the team's preparation divided into three levels. Players were to have individual technical coaching so as to equip them better to fulfil the tasks Lobanovskyi set them during a game; specific tactics and tasks for each player were drawn up according to the opponents; and a strategy was devised for a competition as a whole, placing each game in context by acknowledging that it is impossible for a side to maintain maximal levels over a protracted period. Lobanovskyi and Zelentsov wrote in their book, The Methodological Basis of the Development of Training Models, "the first thing we have in mind is to strive for new courses of action that will not allow the opponent to adapt to our style of play. If an opponent has adjusted himself to our style of play and found a counter-play, then we need to find a new strategy. That is the dialectic of the game. You have to go forward in such a way and with such a range of attacking options that it will force the opponent to make a mistake. In other words, it's necessary to force the opponent into the condition you want them to be in. One of the most important means of doing that is to vary the size of the playing area." One thing remained central: keep the preferred playing area as large as possible while in possession, and as small as possible while the opponent had the ball.
In Methodological Basis, Lobanovskyi and Zelentsov give as an example of their preparation for a specific game the European Cup semi-final against Bayern Munich in 1977. ‘The play,’ they wrote, ‘was constructed on attacking actions, with the obligatory neutralisation of the opponent's players, the intention being to deprive him playing space and to defend against the attacks from wide at which Bayern were so strong. The objective was a draw, but we ended up losing 1–0. In the match in Kyiv, we chose a playing model based on squeezing the play and fighting for the ball in our opponents’ half of the pitch, trying to create a numerical advantage in various areas. Eventually we won 2–0.’
Lobanovskyi's preferable formation was the 4–1–3–2. All his teams utilized the talents of two strikers, in 1975 Oleh Blokhin
Oleg Vladimirovich Blokhin, or Oleh Volodymyrovych Blokhin (, ; born 5 November 1952), is a Ukrainian former association football, football player and manager. Regarded as one of the greatest footballers of his generation, Blokhin was a stando ...
and Volodymyr Onyshchenko, in 1986 Blokhin or Oleh Protasov
Oleh Valeriyovych Protasov (; born 4 February 1964) is a Ukrainian and Soviet former footballer who played as a striker. He was a key member of the Soviet Union national team throughout the 1980s; his 28 goals for the Soviet Union are second ...
and Ihor Belanov, and in 1999 Andriy Shevchenko
Andriy Mykolayovych Shevchenko (, ; born 29 September 1976) is a Ukrainian former Manager (association football), football manager and Football player, player. Shevchenko is considered one of the greatest Striker (association football), strik ...
and Serhiy Rebrov
Serhiy Stanislavovych Rebrov (; born 3 June 1974) is a Ukrainian professional Manager (association football), football manager and former Football player, player who played as a striker (association football), striker. He is currently the manage ...
. Lobanovskyi's forwards were highly versatile, being equally capable of shifting to the flanks, organizing attacks as playmakers, joining midfield in defensive formations and even dropping back to help the full-backs during spells of opponent pressure. This versatility of the forwards was key in disorganizing opponents' defenses and creating space for players attacking from the back.
Pressing was always a key element of Lobanovskyi's teams. The main goal of pressing was to create situations of numerical superiority for Dynamo players where the ball was, and deny opponents both space and time for the right decisions, thus forcing them to always play the game at Dynamo's pace. The trademark Dynamo counter-attacks would start with a player dispossessing his opponent in midfield, then immediately playing a quick long ball either to the forwards or the advancing full-backs, so as to catch the opposition unorganized. Lobanovskyi always stressed the importance of the first seconds of an attack after winning the ball, as it is in these seconds that the opposition is less ready to defend in an organized manner. Pressing was a collective effort, and whenever a player moved up the pitch, a teammate covered his position. In this way Dynamo minimized the threat of having to face a counter-attack by the opponent in case the ball was lost.
Lobanovskyi put meticulous attention to set-pieces both in attack and in defense. In defense, Dynamo often used tactical fouling to prevent opponents from getting quality shots on goal, frequently conceding fouls just at the top of the penalty area. The logic behind this was that free kicks were much easier for the goalkeeper to defend that shots in open play. In addition, they also used tactical fouling to prevent counter attacks: by fouling around the halfway line Dynamo's midfield could get behind the ball to defend. In attack, Lobanovskyi's teams also were intelligent in their use of playing short from free kicks. During the 1990s, most teams would habitually play the ball long after a foul, using the opportunity to progress up the field as quick as possible. Dynamo recognized that opponents would prepare for this and retreat accordingly. Therefore when they played short, there was no pressure applied to the player with the ball for a long duration, allowing for runs to develop. Dynamo's first two goals in the 3–0 victory against Barcelona
Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
in 1997 came from such situations. The high degree of responsiveness and fast reaction speeds were traits to marvel at of Lobanovskyi's side, as they frequently looked to increase the tempo and take advantage of teams that used these moments in the game to slow down the match. When Dynamo had won a throw next to the opponents' area, the tallest midfielder ( Andriy Husin) would usually stand just inside the area to receive the ball from the throw and make a header-pass to one of the strikers to create a chance. In this way Dynamo scored the 2–0 against Bayern Munich
Fußball-Club Bayern München e. V. (FCB, ), commonly known as Bayern Munich (), FC Bayern () or simply Bayern, is a German professional sports club based in Munich, Bavaria. They are most known for their men's professional football team, ...
in 2000, when Ramiz Mamedov
Ramiz Mamedov (; ; born 21 August 1972) is a retired Soviet and Russian football player of Azerbaijani descent, best known as a defender for Spartak Moscow in the 1990s.
Club career
Mamedov's career as player started in 1991 and finished in 2 ...
launched a throw straight into Husin's head, Husin flicked on a header-pass to Giorgi Demetradze in the penalty spot, who scored with an overhead kick.
Dynamo's shape in the late 1990s was a front two of Rebrov and Shevchenko but as an offensive principle they always attacked three lanes: right, left and center. It didn't matter what the shape was or who it was, there were always three players attacking the three lanes. This was split into two methods, the first being a player attacking one of the wide lanes as one of Rebrov or Shevchenko was central. That player was mostly Belkevich who not only operated behind the striker duo but also attacked the wide areas regularly. The second method was Rebrov and Shevchenko splitting, therefore allowing a runner in between.
In the "stretched diamond" formation, which differs from a typical diamond in that one player operates in a much wider position than the others, Lobanovskyi was able to fully make use of the talents of versatile midfielder Vitaliy Kosovskyi
Vitaliy Vladyslavovych Kosovskyi (; born 11 August 1973) is a Ukrainian former professional footballer who played as a midfielder for Dynamo Kyiv and a Ukraine national team.
Early life
Born in Ostroh, Rivne Oblast, his first steps in footba ...
, who was effectively both a left midfielder in the "standard" 4–1–3–2 and a left winger next to Shevchenko and Rebrov when attacks unfolded, practically making the formation a 4–3–3. When defending, Kosovskyi's speed made him useful also as a left back, enabling the actual left back Kakha Kaladze
Kakhaber "Kakha" Kaladze ( ka, კახაბერ "კახა" კალაძე, ; born 27 February 1978) is a Georgian politician and former footballer who has served as the Mayor of Tbilisi since November 2017. A versatile player, he ...
to drop inside as a third central defender, converting the formation into a 5–3–2. In the absence of Kosovskyi due to injury during the second half of the 1999–2000 season, Lobanovskyi used Giorgi Demetradze as a wide striker. Against Real Madrid at the Bernabeu, Demetradze was instructed to exploit the space in Madrid's defense left open by full-back Roberto Carlos
Roberto Carlos da Silva Rocha (born 10 April 1973), often known as Roberto Carlos and sometimes ''RC3'', is a Brazilian former professional association football, footballer. He has been described as the "most offensive-minded left-back in the ...
' forward runs. In this game, Demetradze won a penalty (that Rebrov missed), won the corner for Dynamo's equalizer, and finally crossed for Dynamo's second goal that made it 1–2.
Dynamo's defending was usually organized as a mixed zonal-and-man-marking system; players would usually defend zonally yet the opposition's best player was in most cases man-marked by a Dynamo player who tracked him back whenever he went. Perhaps the most significant application of the tracking back was against Real Madrid in the 1999 Champions League quarter-finals at the Santiago Bernabeu. Alyaksandr Khatskevich's role was to defend the right channel and center area as Predrag Mijatović
Predrag Mijatović ( sr-cyrl, Предраг Мијатовић; born 19 January 1969) is a Montenegrin Association football, football administrator and former player who played as a Striker (association football), striker.
At club level, Mijato ...
drifted inside to overload the center. He also had Oleksiy Mykhaylychenko man-mark Holland's Ruud Gullit
Ruud Gullit (; born Rudi Dil; 1 September 1962) is a former Dutch Association football, footballer and subsequent manager. Regarded among the greatest footballers of all time, he was also noted for his Utility player#Association football, abili ...
in the Euro 1988 final.
Lobanovskyi was tactically versatile and would make risky changes during matches to alter the course of the game. In December 1998, Dynamo was playing away at RC Lens
Racing Club de Lens (), commonly referred to as RC Lens or simply as Lens, is a French professional football club based in the northern city of Lens in the department of Pas-de-Calais. The club's nickname, ''Les Sang et Or'' (), comes from i ...
needing a draw to qualify as first from their Champions League group. Lobanovskyi chose a defensive-minded deployment, with Rebrov posted on the left wing and the midfield consisting of defense-oriented players, being effectively a 4–5–1 with Shevchenko as the lone striker. However, after Lens captain Frédéric Déhu was sent off for a hard challenge on Shevchenko with the score at 0–0, Lobanovskyi quickly made two offensive-minded changes, bringing in Vitaliy Kosovskyi
Vitaliy Vladyslavovych Kosovskyi (; born 11 August 1973) is a Ukrainian former professional footballer who played as a midfielder for Dynamo Kyiv and a Ukraine national team.
Early life
Born in Ostroh, Rivne Oblast, his first steps in footba ...
for defender Yuriy Dmytrulin and Valentin Belkevich for Vasyl Kardash and pairing Rebrov with Shevchenko up front, thus changing the system into a 3–2–3–2. Dynamo won the game 3–1, also winning the group to advance to the quarter-finals.
He insisted that a player should be able to play in more than one position. He converted Aleksei Gerasimenko, originally a striker who had scored 46 goals in 71 games with FC Kuban Krasnodar
FC Kuban () was a Russian professional football club based in Krasnodar, which now only plays on a regional level. The team began playing in the Russian Premier League in 2011, having for won the Russian First Division a year prior. By then, ...
, into a right midfielder, a right full-back, and even into a sweeper. Likewise, central defender Oleksandr Holovko
Oleksandr Borysovych Holovko (; born 6 January 1972) is a Ukrainian association football, football manager and former player who manages FC Dinaz Vyshhorod, Dinaz Vyshhorod. A centre-back, Holovko used to be a regular starter for the Ukraine na ...
was also good when he joined midfield, and Kakha Kaladze
Kakhaber "Kakha" Kaladze ( ka, კახაბერ "კახა" კალაძე, ; born 27 February 1978) is a Georgian politician and former footballer who has served as the Mayor of Tbilisi since November 2017. A versatile player, he ...
was equally adept as left back, defensive midfielder and centre back.
Lobanovskyi's emphasis on the system rather than the individuals meant that his teams continued to perform well even when their best players were lost to transfers, injuries or bookings. In the 1997–98 season Dynamo's two most important midfielders were Yuriy Kalitvintsev and Yuriy Maksymov, who left the team in the end of the year. Lobanovskyi had already found their replacements in Alyaksandr Khatskevich and Valentin Belkevich, and the team made an even more spectacular run next season. In the second half of the 1999–2000 season the team was plagued with injuries in key players Vladyslav Vashchuk
Vladyslav Viktorovych Vashchuk (; born 2 January 1975) is a retired Ukrainian football defender who last played for FC Volyn Lutsk.
Vashchuk was also a member of the Ukraine national football team playing 63 times. He mainly played in the ce ...
, Yuriy Dmytrulin and Vitaliy Kosovskyi
Vitaliy Vladyslavovych Kosovskyi (; born 11 August 1973) is a Ukrainian former professional footballer who played as a midfielder for Dynamo Kyiv and a Ukraine national team.
Early life
Born in Ostroh, Rivne Oblast, his first steps in footba ...
, and was forced to play important Champions League games against Real Madrid
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional Football club (association football), football club based in Madrid. The club competes in La Liga, th ...
, Bayern Munich and Rosenborg BK
Rosenborg Ballklub, commonly referred to simply as Rosenborg () or RBK, is a Norwegian professional association football, football club from Trondheim that plays in Eliteserien (football), Eliteserien. The club has won a record 26 league titles ...
with a defensive line consisting of youngsters Andriy Nesmachniy
Andriy Mykolayovych Nesmachnyi (, born 28 February 1979) is a retired Russian-born Ukrainian footballer. He has spent his entire career at Dynamo Kyiv in the Ukrainian Premier League. He was a skillful, attacking left-back who could also play ...
and Serhiy Fedorov
Serhiy Vladyslavovych Fedorov (, born 18 February 1975) is a Ukrainian football manager and former player. He started off as a central defender, but mostly plays as a right back, or a right-sided midfielder. He subsequently started a manageri ...
and with Gerasimenko playing as a sweeper, way out of his natural position. Despite all this, Dynamo were able to collect 10 points in these 4 matches, beating Rosenborg twice, Bayern once and drawing 2–2 with Real at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium
Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the country's central valley and is the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Region, ...
.
Remembrance
Following his death Lobanovskyi was awarded the Hero of Ukraine
A Hero of Ukraine (HOU; ) is the highest national decoration that can be conferred upon an individual citizen by the president of Ukraine.
The decoration was created in 1998 by President Leonid Kuchma. As of 6 June 2025, the total number of re ...
order, the nation's highest honour, as well as the UEFA Order of Merit in Ruby. Dynamo Kyiv's stadium was also renamed the Lobanovsky Stadium in his honour. In 2003, Lobanovskyi was awarded FIFA Order of Merit
The FIFA Order of Merit is the highest honour awarded by FIFA. The award is presented at the annual FIFA congress. It is normally awarded to people who are considered to have made a significant contribution to :association football.
At FIFA's ce ...
, the highest honour awarded by FIFA.
On 11 May 2003, before the first anniversary of the death of Lobanovskyi, a monument was opened near the Lobanovsky Dynamo Stadium.
After his death, A.C. Milan
(), commonly referred to as Milan or AC Milan () mainly outside of Italy, is an Italian professional Football club (association football), football club based in Milan, Lombardy. Founded in 1899, the club competes in the Serie A, the top tie ...
won the Champions League in 2003 with Andriy Shevchenko
Andriy Mykolayovych Shevchenko (, ; born 29 September 1976) is a Ukrainian former Manager (association football), football manager and Football player, player. Shevchenko is considered one of the greatest Striker (association football), strik ...
in the team. After the victory Shevchenko flew to Kyiv to put his medal by the grave of his former manager.[Events by themes: Persons. Valery Lobanovsky]
, Ukrainian Independent Information Agency
The Ukrainian Independent Information Agency of News () is a Kyiv-based Ukrainian news agency. It produces and provides political, business and financial information, and a photo reporting service. As of October 2022, it was the most visited n ...
photoservice (9 January 2009)
In 2003, the Valeriy Lobanovskyi Memorial Tournament
Valeriy Lobanovskyi Memorial Tournament () is an international football tournament established in honour and memory of Valeriy Lobanovskyi since his death on 13 May 2002, hence the name Memorial. The idea was initiated by the FC Dynamo Kyiv managem ...
was founded.
Personal life
Lobanovskyi was born in Kyiv to Vasyl Mykhailovych Lobko-Lobanovsky and Oleksandra Maksymivna Boichenko. Lobanovskyi's daughter Svitlana Lobanovska told Newspaper in Ukrainian that Vasyl Lobko-Lobanovsky had a double surname but double surnames were not welcome in the USSR, therefore his both sons, Valeriy and Yevhen, decided to use single surname Lobanovsky.
Lobanovskyi was married to Ada Lobanovska,[Events by themes: 70th anniversary from the day of birth of Valeriy Lobanovskiy]
, Ukrainian Independent Information Agency
The Ukrainian Independent Information Agency of News () is a Kyiv-based Ukrainian news agency. It produces and provides political, business and financial information, and a photo reporting service. As of October 2022, it was the most visited n ...
photoservice (6 January 2009) the couple had a daughter named Svitlana. She is a philologist of the Russian language and owns a restaurant in Kyiv
Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...
called ''"U metrá"'' (''"At The Metr"''; "Metr" (ukr. ''Метр'') was one of Lobanovskyi's many nicknames).
Career statistics
As a manager
Managerial statistics
Honours
Player
Dynamo Kyiv
*Soviet Top League
The Soviet Top League, known after 1970 as the Higher League (), served as the top division (tier) of Soviet Union football from 1936 until 1991. The league's name was a conditional designation used for brevity since being completely owned and g ...
(1): 1961
Events January
* January 1 – Monetary reform in the Soviet Union, 1961, Monetary reform in the Soviet Union.
* January 3
** United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces that the United States has severed diplomatic and cons ...
*Soviet Cup
The Soviet Cup, or USSR Cup (),, , , (Moldovan Cyrillic: Купа УРСС), , , . was the premier football cup competition in the Soviet Union conducted by the Football Federation of the Soviet Union. The 1991–92 season of the tournam ...
(1): 1964
Events January
* January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved.
* January 5 – In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patria ...
Manager
Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk
*Soviet First League
The Soviet First League in football () was the second highest division of Soviet football,Evgeni Kazakov. The Soviet First Football League (Первая лига СССР по футболу)''. History of Soviet football championships. Volume 1 ...
(1): 1971
Dynamo Kyiv
*Soviet Top League (8): 1974
Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; ...
, 1975
It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe.
Events
January
* January 1 – Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...
, 1977
Events January
* January 8 – 1977 Moscow bombings, Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group.
* January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (no ...
, 1980
Events January
* January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a United States grain embargo against the Soviet Union, grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission.
* January 6 – Global Positioning Sys ...
, 1981
Events January
* January 1
** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union.
** Palau becomes a self-governing territory.
* January 6 – A funeral service is held in West Germany for Nazi Grand Admiral ...
, 1985
The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1
** The Internet's Domain Name System is created.
** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a n ...
, 1986
The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1
** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles.
** Spain and Portugal en ...
, 1990
Important events of 1990 include the Reunification of Germany and the unification of Yemen, the formal beginning of the Human Genome Project (finished in 2003), the launch of the Hubble Space Telescope, the separation of Namibia from South ...
*Soviet Cup (6): 1974
Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; ...
, 1978
Events January
* January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213.
* January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of Republican People's Party, CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd ...
, 1982
Events
January
* January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00).
* January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street Bridge in Washington, D.C. ...
, 1985
The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1
** The Internet's Domain Name System is created.
** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a n ...
, 1987
Events January
* January 1 – Bolivia reintroduces the Boliviano currency.
* January 2 – Chadian–Libyan conflict – Battle of Fada: The Military of Chad, Chadian army destroys a Libyan armoured brigade.
* January 3 – Afghan leader ...
, 1990
Important events of 1990 include the Reunification of Germany and the unification of Yemen, the formal beginning of the Human Genome Project (finished in 2003), the launch of the Hubble Space Telescope, the separation of Namibia from South ...
*Soviet Super Cup
The USSR Super Cup,, , , also known as the Season's Cup, was an unofficial exhibition game (or game series) not sanctioned by the Football Federation of the Soviet Union and that featured the winners of the previous season's Soviet Top League ...
(3): 1980
Events January
* January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a United States grain embargo against the Soviet Union, grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission.
* January 6 – Global Positioning Sys ...
, 1985
The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1
** The Internet's Domain Name System is created.
** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a n ...
, 1986
The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1
** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles.
** Spain and Portugal en ...
* Tournament of the Soviet society "Dynamo" (1): 1987
* Ukrainian National League (5): 1997
Events January
* January 1 – The Emergency Alert System is introduced in the United States.
* January 11 – Turkey threatens Cyprus on account of a deal to buy Russian S-300 missiles, prompting the Cypriot Missile Crisis.
* January 1 ...
, 1998
1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''.
Events January
* January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...
, 1999
1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons.
Events January
* January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers.
* January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...
, 2000
2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year.
Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...
, 2001
The year's most prominent event was the September 11 attacks against the United States by al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror. The United States led a Participan ...
*Ukrainian Cup
The Ukrainian Cup ( ) is an association football national knockout cup competition run by the Ukrainian Association of Football. The competition is conducted almost exclusively among professional clubs. Since the 2003–04 season, the Cup winner qu ...
(3): 1998
1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''.
Events January
* January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...
, 1999
1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons.
Events January
* January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers.
* January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...
, 2000
2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year.
Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...
*European Cup Winners' Cup
The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European association football, football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The competition's official name was originally the European Cup Winners' Cup; it was renam ...
(2): 1975
It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe.
Events
January
* January 1 – Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...
, 1986
The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1
** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles.
** Spain and Portugal en ...
*European Super Cup
The UEFA Super Cup is an annual super cup football match organised by UEFA and contested by the winners of the two main European club competitions: the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League. The competition's official name was original ...
(1): 1975
It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe.
Events
January
* January 1 – Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...
; runner-up: 1986
The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1
** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles.
** Spain and Portugal en ...
*Commonwealth of Independent States Cup
The Commonwealth of Independent States Cup () is a defunct annual regional association football tournament, recognized by FIFA.
The tournament was initially established for football clubs of the former Soviet Union republics in 1993 (a year late ...
(3): 1997
Events January
* January 1 – The Emergency Alert System is introduced in the United States.
* January 11 – Turkey threatens Cyprus on account of a deal to buy Russian S-300 missiles, prompting the Cypriot Missile Crisis.
* January 1 ...
, 1998
1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''.
Events January
* January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...
, 2002
The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...
Soviet Union
*UEFA European Championship
The UEFA European Football Championship, less formally the European Championship and informally the Euro or Euros, is the primary association football tournament organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). The competition ...
runner-up: 1988
1988 was a crucial year in the early history of the Internet—it was the year of the first well-known computer virus, the Morris worm, 1988 Internet worm. The first permanent intercontinental Internet link was made between the United State ...
*Summer Olympic Games
The Summer Olympic Games, also known as the Summer Olympics or the Games of the Olympiad, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The 1896 Summer Olympics, inaugural Games took place in 1896 in Athens, ...
bronze medal: 1976
Events January
* January 2 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force.
* January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea.
* January 18 – Full diplomatic ...
Ukrainian SSR
* Spartakiad of Peoples bronze medal: 1979
Kuwait
*Asian Games
The Asian Games, also known as Asiad, is a continental multi-sport event held every four years for athletes of Asia. The Games were regulated by Asian Games Federation from the 1951 Asian Games, first Games in New Delhi, India in 1951, until ...
bronze medal: 1994
The year 1994 was designated as the " International Year of the Family" and the "International Year of Sport and the Olympic Ideal" by the United Nations.
In the Line Islands and Phoenix Islands of Kiribati, 1994 had only 364 days, omitti ...
*Arabian Gulf Cup
The Arabian Gulf Cup (, ''Kaʾs al-Khalīj al-ʿArabī''), also referred to simply as the Gulf Cup, is a biennial association football competition governed by the Arab Gulf Cup Football Federation for its eight member nations. The history of ...
(1): 1996
1996 was designated as:
* International Year for the Eradication of Poverty
Events January
* January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...
Individual
* Guerin Sportivo Manager of the Year: 1986 (2nd place)
*Ukrainian Manager of the Season (5 times): 1996–97, 1997–98, 1998–99, 1999–00, 2001–02 (posthumously)
*European Football Coach of the Year: 1986, 1988, 1999
*European Football Coach of the Season: 1985–86
*Greatest Manager of All Time – one of 5 managers ranked top 10 by France Football
''France Football'' is a French monthly magazine containing football news from all over the world. It is considered to be one of the most reputable sports publications in Europe, mostly because of its photographic reports, in-depth and exclus ...
, World Soccer and ESPN
ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...
**6th place (France Football
''France Football'' is a French monthly magazine containing football news from all over the world. It is considered to be one of the most reputable sports publications in Europe, mostly because of its photographic reports, in-depth and exclus ...
): 2019
**6th place ( World Soccer): 2013
**8th place (ESPN
ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...
): 2013
**10th place (FourFourTwo
''FourFourTwo'' is an association football magazine published by British company Future. Issued monthly, it published its 300th edition in May 2019. It takes its name from the football formation of the same name, 4–4–2. Future acquired the ...
): 2023
* Ukrainian Footballer of the Year: 1962, 1963, 1964
* IFFHS World's Best Club Coach:
**4th place (1997)
**6th place (1998)
**9th place (1999)
Orders and further honours
*
Hero of Ukraine
A Hero of Ukraine (HOU; ) is the highest national decoration that can be conferred upon an individual citizen by the president of Ukraine.
The decoration was created in 1998 by President Leonid Kuchma. As of 6 June 2025, the total number of re ...
, Order of the State: 2002
*
Order of Merit (Ukraine)
The Order of Merit () (Distinguished service) first, second or third class, is the Ukrainian order of merit, given to individuals for outstanding achievements in economics, science, culture, military or political spheres of activity. It was firs ...
, Class II: 1998
*
Order of Merit (Ukraine)
The Order of Merit () (Distinguished service) first, second or third class, is the Ukrainian order of merit, given to individuals for outstanding achievements in economics, science, culture, military or political spheres of activity. It was firs ...
, Class III: 1998
*
Order of the Badge of Honour
The Order of the Badge of Honour () was a civilian award of the Soviet Union.
It was established on 25 November 1935, and was conferred on citizens of the USSR for outstanding achievements in sports, production, scientific research and socia ...
: 1971
*
Order of the Red Banner of Labour
The Order of the Red Banner of Labour () was an order of the Soviet Union established to honour great deeds and services to the Soviet state and society in the fields of production, science, culture, literature, the arts, education, sports ...
: 1987
*
Medal "In Commemoration of the 1500th Anniversary of Kyiv": 1982
* FIFA Order of Merit
The FIFA Order of Merit is the highest honour awarded by FIFA. The award is presented at the annual FIFA congress. It is normally awarded to people who are considered to have made a significant contribution to :association football.
At FIFA's ce ...
: 2002
* UEFA Order of Merit in Ruby: 2002
See also
* List of football managers with the most games
References
External links
*
*
Lobanovsky legacy lives on in Ukraine
' (Chicago Tribune
The ''Chicago Tribune'' is an American daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1847, it was formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan from which its once integrated WGN (AM), WGN radio and ...
article)
All statistics for the Soviet Union at rusteam.ru
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lobanovsky, Valeri
1939 births
2002 deaths
Footballers from Kyiv
Kyiv Polytechnic Institute alumni
Odesa National Polytechnic University alumni
Communist Party of the Soviet Union members
Recipients of the title of Hero of Ukraine
Recipients of the Order of the Badge of Honour
Recipients of the Order of Merit (Ukraine), 2nd class
Recipients of the Order of Merit (Ukraine), 3rd class
Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner of Labour
Men's association football forwards
Soviet men's footballers
Soviet Union men's international footballers
Soviet Top League players
FC Dynamo Kyiv players
FC Shakhtar Donetsk players
FC Chornomorets Odesa players
Soviet football managers
Ukrainian football managers
UEFA Euro 1988 managers
1986 FIFA World Cup managers
1990 FIFA World Cup managers
1992 AFC Asian Cup managers
FC Dnipro managers
FC Dynamo Kyiv managers
Soviet Union national football team managers
Kuwait national football team managers
United Arab Emirates national football team managers
Ukraine national football team managers
Expatriate football managers in Kuwait
Expatriate football managers in the United Arab Emirates
Soviet Top League managers
Soviet First League managers
Ukrainian Premier League managers
Soviet expatriate football managers
Ukrainian expatriate football managers
Ukrainian people of Polish descent
Soviet people of Polish descent
Soviet expatriate sportspeople in the United Arab Emirates
Ukrainian expatriate sportspeople in Kuwait
Ukrainian expatriate sportspeople in the United Arab Emirates
Burials at Baikove Cemetery