English football club Brentford hosted an event at their base dedicated to Ukrainian cuisine, where the main exhibit was Ukraine national team midfielder Yegor Yarmolyuk. The event was accompanied by presentations about the country and its traditions.
Event format at the base
"Smachnoho. Yegor Yarmolyuk brought the taste of Ukraine to 'Jersey Road' for our themed lunch"
– Brentford
At the communal lunch, placards with brief facts about Ukraine and its cultural symbols were displayed. Photos show head coach Kate Andrews sampling Ukrainian dishes alongside teammates.
Information about Ukraine
- Ukraine is noted as the geographical center of Europe;
- it is the largest country located entirely in Europe;
- in Ukrainian tradition, wedding rings are worn on the right hand;
- pysanka (decorated Easter eggs) are associated with Ukrainian origins;
- the name "borsch" has roots in the Ukrainian language;
- Lviv is noted for a large number of cafés per capita (approximately 1,500 establishments);
- the flag's colors — blue and yellow — symbolize the sky above wheat fields.
Club reaction and the player's story
In photos from the event, head coach Kate Andrews and Yegor's teammates — Yunus Konak, Myles Peart-Harris and Mikkel Damsgaard — are seen tasting the dishes. The club also published video and photos capturing the atmosphere of the event.
Yegor Yarmolyuk moved to Brentford in 2022 from Dnipro-1. This season he has played 14 matches and recorded one assist.
The footballer quickly won the affection of local fans, including 11-year-old Eddie, to whom Yarmolyuk gave his home shirt after the match against Manchester United — an occasion that became a special memory for the boy.
"To celebrate the moment, we reunited Eddie and Yegor again at the Newcastle match to create a moment he'll never forget. That's what Brentford is: connections, community and creating memories that last a lifetime"
– Brentford
The piece also recalled another anecdote related to Ukrainian cuisine: Andriy Shevchenko spoke about the reaction of Paolo Maldini and other Milan players when he introduced them to salo, and how they later started asking for it.
"Honestly: at first someone thought it was a drug. I cut a thin slice, put it on bread and started chewing — they had strange looks. Later they loved salo so much that I used to bring it with me to Italy"
– Andriy Shevchenko
At the end it is mentioned that the Ukraine national team is preparing for the play-off semi-final of the qualification for the 2026 World Cup, where their opponent will be the Swedish national team.
