A Carefree Week
The 50 children and young people from the Dnipropetrovsk region were guests in Dortmund from 19 to 27 April 2026. The football-loving participants, aged nine to 15, were accompanied by ten adults.
The idea for the initiative originated in the Cologne-based sports marketing agency Sport Humanagement, which contacted the State Chancellery of North Rhine-Westphalia directly. The initiative was met with immediate enthusiasm. Rheinmetall came on board as a sponsor. Everyone involved shared one goal: to give children from war-torn Ukraine new experiences, a sense of community and a degree of normality.
“The motto is ‘Taking Responsibility’. A week like this shows that, for all of us here, responsibility is not just a buzzword but something we put into practice.”
Managing Director of BVB
Football and physical activity were at the heart of the programme. The group enthusiastically took part in several training sessions at the BVB EVONIK Football Academy. They also joined a tour of SIGNAL IDUNA PARK and visited the German Football Museum. Of course, there was time for a few selfies during the meet-and-greet with BVB legend Kevin Großkreutz.
North Rhine-Westphalia's Minister for European Affairs, Nathanael Liminski, and BVB Managing Director Carsten Cramer made a point of welcoming the group, demonstrating solidarity and cohesion between North Rhine-Westphalia and its Ukrainian partner region.
“BVB and Rheinmetall stand for top performance and responsibility ‘Made in NRW’. The state government expressly welcomes this strong alliance.”
NRW Minister for European Affairs
The highlight was watching Borussia Dortmund's 4-0 home win over SC Freiburg live at the stadium. Because Rheinmetall employees also attended the match with their children, kids and teenagers from Germany and Ukraine were happy to connect amongst each other.