Ukraine vs. Northern Ireland: Where and When to Watch the Nations League Match

On October 2, the Ukrainian national team will face Northern Ireland in the third round of the Nations League. The match, which is technically a home game, will take place in Trnava, Slovakia. Andrea Maldera’s team will be vying for sole possession of first place in Group B2.

The Ukraine vs. Northern Ireland match will take place on October 2 in Slovakia. 

For the “Blue and Yellows,” this will be the first of two so-called home matches during this international break.

The match at the Anton Malatinsky Stadium in Trnava will kick off at 9:45 p.m. Kyiv time.

A Belgian refereeing crew led by 34-year-old Jasper Vergote will officiate the match. He will be assisted by Michael Geerolf and Martijn Tisters.

Lothar D’Hondt will serve as the fourth official. Jan Boterborg will be in charge of the VAR system, with Wesley de Kremer serving as his assistant.

After two rounds, Ukraine and Northern Ireland have identical records—four points each and no goals conceded.

In the first round, both teams secured narrow victories: Ukraine defeated Hungary, and Northern Ireland beat Georgia. In the second round, both teams played to a 0–0 draw.

Therefore, the match in Trnava is crucial for the tournament: the winner will have the opportunity to take sole possession of first place in Group B2.

In the match against Georgia, Northern Ireland lost one of its key players. Center back Daniel Butland suffered an injury and returned to Sunderland early.

Conor Bradley, Alister McCann, Jamie McDonnell, and Brad Lyons were also not called up for this training camp.

In the previous match against Georgia, Roman Yaremchuk and Matviy Ponomarenko took the field. Both forwards have recovered from health issues.

Meanwhile, Vitalii Mykolenko will not be able to help the Ukrainian national team during this training camp. The Everton defender suffered a leg injury back in the game against Hungary. Due to the injury, he missed the match against Georgia and, as confirmed by Andrea Maldera, will not play against Northern Ireland.

The match in Slovakia will be the seventh in the history of meetings between the national teams of Ukraine and Northern Ireland.

The teams last faced each other in 2021. In that friendly match in Dnipro, Ukraine secured the victory thanks to a lone goal by Oleksandr Zubkov.

Overall, the rivalry between the teams has not been particularly high-scoring: in seven matches, Ukraine and Northern Ireland have scored only seven goals combined.

The head-to-head record favors Ukraine: three wins, two draws, and one loss.

The Ukrainian national team’s only loss came at the 2016 European Championship. Back then, in Lyon, France, Northern Ireland defeated Mykhailo Fomenko’s team 2–0.

The Ukraine national team’s match in Trnava will be broadcast on the MEGOGO OTT platform. The game will be available with the “Optimal” and “Sport” subscriptions, as well as with all “MEGOPACK” packages.

The game can be watched for free on the “MEGOGO SPORT” TV channel, which is available on T2 and on cable networks.

A traditional pre-match show will air before the game. The pre-match broadcast will begin at 8:30 p.m.

Vadym Shevyakin and Illia Dudka will provide commentary on the match.

The Ukrainian national soccer team has already played two UEFA Nations League matches in September. First, the “blue-and-yellows” defeated Hungary in Budapest, then drew with Georgia in Tbilisi.

The third round of the Nations League group stage begins on October 1. Matches will be played on that day, and results and video highlights will be available after the games conclude.