President of the Ukrainian Football Association Andriy Shevchenko visited the city of Reykjavik (Iceland) at the invitation of the Football Association of Iceland and its president, Toddi Orlisson, to participate in the prestigious Nordic Football Research Conference 2025.
Andriy Shevchenko. Photo: UAFThis year's conference was dedicated to research that helps football associations, clubs, and coaches achieve results on the field. The focus was on innovative approaches to coaching, performance analysis, sports analytics, and psychology.
On the first day of the visit, a meeting took place at the office of the Football Association of Iceland, during which participants had the opportunity to discuss coaching experience, approaches to player development, as well as the peculiarities of playing careers in clubs from different countries.
On the second day of the conference, Andriy Shevchenko spoke before a wide football audience at the University of Reykjavik, which brought together participants from more than 15 countries.
During his speeches, Andriy Shevchenko shared his own career path and also talked about his professional values as a player, coach, and football manager, among which are identity, dedication, and self-belief.
“It was an honor for me to share my football journey and philosophy with such an inspired and dedicated audience. I am very grateful for the warm welcome and hospitality,” Shevchenko noted.
He also expressed heartfelt thanks to the event organizers:
“Thank you very much to the Football Association of Iceland and especially to President Toddi Orlisson for inviting me to speak. Special thanks to the Icelandic football community for the ongoing support of Ukraine — your solidarity is extremely important to us. It is also important to highlight the support of other Nordic countries. Your strong position in European football is a solid force and a support that we rely on very much and for which we are truly grateful to all of you.”
The UAF continues to initiate and implement projects aimed at supporting youth football, developing coaching education, as well as social initiatives. Special attention is paid to the development of coaching education as a key prerequisite for forming a quality football environment, preparing new generations of players, and ensuring sustainable sports infrastructure.
Andriy Shevchenko’s participation in the conference was a vivid testimony of international interaction and experience exchange for the development of football at both national and global levels.
