Mykhailo Fomenko, former Ukraine coach and a Soviet-era player for Dynamo Kyiv, has died at 75
Ukraine's national soccer team head coach Mykhailo Fomenko speaks during a news conference in Minsk, Belarus, Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2014. Ukraine coach and Soviet-era player for the Dynamo Kyiv Mykhailo Fomenko has died, the Ukrainian club said on Monday, April 29, 2024. He was 75. Credit: AP/Sergei Grits
KIYV, Ukraine — Mykhailo Fomenko, a former Soviet-era player for Dynamo Kiev who went on to coach Ukraine's national team at the European Championship, has died, the Ukrainian club said Monday. He was 75.
Dynamo did not disclose details about the cause of death.
“I grieve together with everyone who loved this beautiful person,” Dynamo president Ihor Surkis said. “The good memory of Mykhailo Fomenko will remain with us forever.”
As a player, Fomenko was a key defender on the Dynamo team that won the Soviet Union's league title three times, and the 1975 Cup Winners’ Cup in Europe. The team went on to beat Bayern Munich in the UEFA Super Cup that year.
He was also part of the Soviet teams that reached the final of the 1972 European Championship and took bronze at the 1976 Olympics.
As a coach, Fomenko helped Ukraine qualify for Euro 2016 in France, although his team lost all three group games at the tournament.
He also coached Dynamo to its first Ukrainian league title in the 1992-93 season following the country's split from the Soviet Union.
Ukraine coach Mykhailo Fomenko during the Euro 2016 Group C soccer match between Germany and Ukraine at the Pierre Mauroy stadium in Villeneuve d'Ascq, near Lille, France, Sunday, June 12, 2016. Ukraine coach and Soviet-era player for the Dynamo Kyiv Mykhailo Fomenko has died, the Ukrainian club said on Monday, April 29, 2024. He was 75. Credit: AP/Frank Augstein
