Announcement of matches of the second round of the National U-19 League
On August 12, the second round of the updated tournament will begin, played in a new format.
The game Wednesday will start at 12:00 with the matches "Shakhtar" - "LNZ" and "Metalurh Zaporizhzhia" - "Polissya". You can see the full schedule of matches and find links to online broadcasts of matches on the official website of the Ukrainian U-19 Championship - via the link.
On the official website, you can also find the tournament table and statistical information from the UAF Data Center.
What has changed in the U-19 tournament?
At the end of July, the UAF approved an updated format for the national and regional U-19 leagues. The reform's focus is on increasing competition in youth competitions: the composition of participants is formed based on sporting principles and the strength of teams, rather than geography or administrative decisions. It is in conditions of equal competition that young footballers can fully develop. Similar changes have already been implemented in youth and women's competitions.
National U-19 League. The tournament features 14 teams, and the championship is held in two rounds following the "autumn-spring" system.
Regional U-19 League. Clubs and sports schools are divided into four groups of 8-10 teams based on territorial principles. In the first stage, teams play two rounds within their groups, after which the group winners advance to the playoffs: the semifinal pairs are determined by drawing, each confrontation consists of two matches, and the teams that lose in the semifinals play a match for third place.
Exchange between leagues. The key idea of the reform is open sports rotation. The team that finishes 14th in the National League moves down to the Regional League. The winner of the Regional League is promoted directly, provided they meet the requirements of the regulations and have a professional or semi-professional certificate. Three more teams get a chance through play-off matches: the second team of the RL plays against the 13th team of the NL, the third - against the 12th, the fourth - against the 11th. Each pair plays two matches, and the winner is determined by their sum. Thus, each participant in the Regional League has a real sporting path to the elite level.
Semi-professional status. Along with the new format, a semi-professional status for clubs is introduced, which is granted after certification. It allows clubs to enter into labor contracts with players on part-time terms, legally formalize the relationship between the club and the player, and protect club investments in youth development.
