How "Metalist 1925" was created: Skakun revealed details of the club's birth

One of the direct participants in the creation of a football club in Kharkiv, former deputy and acting head of the Kharkiv Regional State Administration Oleksandr Skakun, shared memories of the project's inception, the emergence of the name "Metalist 1925," and the challenging path of the club's formation.

The events surrounding the birth of a new football club in Kharkiv unfolded in the early years of the Russian-Ukrainian war. The date of August 17, 2016, marks not the beginning of the process, but already the first physical result.

"The club was born in difficult times for the country, actually during wartime. I am proud that at that time I came up with the slogan for it: 'Born in Battle,'" Skakun shared.

And the "clever move" with the club's name belonged to the then advisor to the head of the Kharkiv Regional State Administration and the first deputy president of the Football Federation of Ukraine Serhii Storozhenko.

"At that time, the beloved club of Kharkiv residents, 'Metalist,' was going through bankruptcy proceedings, and on the sports front, there was silence and calm, which Kharkiv sports was not accustomed to after the noisy seasons of the last decade. It was clear that at that time, no one was interested in dealing with the 'Metalist' case, no one was going to pay off the club's colossal debts, and it was practically on its deathbed. Serhii Mykhailovych, as they say, made a bold move. In my opinion, the creativity of his idea lay in the name - 'Metalist 1925.' Yes, it was partly a small football trick, but legally sound, which later allowed us to repeatedly defend ourselves in courts and various investigations in various, including international, instances," notes Oleksandr Skakun.

He argues that the name is not a sign of succession to that legendary 'Metalist,' but a tribute to the great history of Kharkiv football and the continuity of generations. Another feature of the new football project was its "popularity," as the club's shares had a large number of supporters.

"Therefore, our shareholders' meetings were often noisy but constructive and effective," Skakun comments. "I can honestly say that I understood that such a situation would not last long, but at the stage of its birth and approval, it was cool for a young but confident project."

The concept of a people's club lasted for about four years. The costs for moving to the Premier League were significantly increasing, and the pool of sponsors was gradually decreasing. According to Skakun, "on the morning of August 10, 2020, the club was quietly dying." However, it found a new breath. How it happened and how "Metalist 1925" survived the first years of full-scale Russian invasion - all the details are in the anniversary book "Our Name - Kharkiv: The Official History of Metalist 1925", presented for the tenth anniversary of the Kharkiv club.