After Professional leagues shut down back in February following a military invasion by Russia, with no competitive action taken in since mid-December. A new campaign will get underway as Shakhtar Donetsk take on Metalist Kharkiv, but precautions are being taken against a backdrop of potential military threat.

The Ukrainian league will start with 16 sides involved, with Desna Chernihiv and Mariupol forced to sit things out due to the devastation suffered in their respective cities games will be played in and around Kyiv or further west of the capital, with recent outings in European competitions completed at venues in neighboring Poland and Slovakia and over in Sweden.

“This will be a unique competition: It will happen during a war, during military aggression, during bombardments,” Andriy Pavelko, head of the Ukrainian Association of Football, told Reuters in an interview. Matches will be played without fans in the stands due to the risk of bombs and missiles. Two top-flight clubs – Desna Chernihiv and FC Mariupol – are being replaced in the 16-team league after their stadiums were destroyed in the fighting.