Chornomorets returned to the Premier League with a loss to Polissya

Odessa’s FC Chornomorets kicked off the 2026/27 Ukrainian Premier League season with a home loss. In their first-round match, the Odessa team lost 1–2 to Polissya from Zhytomyr.

According to “Sport RBC,” despite the visitors’ dominance in the first half, it was Odessa that opened the scoring. In the 13th minute, Georgian import Giorgi Robakidze intercepted the ball on a counterattack, drove forward, and beat Polissya goalkeeper Heorhiy Bushchan with a precise long-range shot.

However, the Zhytomyr team equalized before halftime. In the 32nd minute, Vladyslav Veleten scored with a beautiful curling shot into the far corner to make it 1–1.

Polissya scored the winning goal early in the second half. In the 51st minute, Ihor Krasnopir, who had come on as a substitute shortly before, headed in a cross from Veleten on the left flank.

After conceding the second goal, Chornomorets tried to fight back. Vitalii Faraseyenko had the best chance, but his shot was saved by Bushchan. Meanwhile, the visitors controlled the flow of the game and created several more dangerous chances, but the score remained unchanged.

Thus, Chornomorets, which returned to the Ukrainian Premier League this season after a one-year hiatus, began the championship with a home loss to the reigning bronze medalist—Polissya from Zhytomyr.

Previously, Odessa’s “Chornomorets” defeated Kharkiv’s “Metalist” at its home stadium and returned to the Premier League. That match ended in a 1–1 draw.

The ChornomoretsOdesa Football Club is a Ukrainian soccer club based in Odesa; its official founding date is considered to be 1936, making it the city’s oldest professional soccer club. Throughout its history, the club has also had other names: “Dynamo” (1936–1939), “Kharchovyk” (1940, 1944–1950, 1955–1957), "Spartak" (1941), and "Metallurg" (1955–1957). Since 1958, the soccer club has been known as "Chornomorets," the name it has retained to this day. 

Андрій Колісніченко