Former Dynamo Kyiv player and three-time USSR champion Ivan Yaremchuk has been detained in Poland.
According to Idman.Biz, citing Ukrainian media, the 63-year-old football veteran has lived in Europe in recent years, including Germany, the Czech Republic, and Belgium.
Yaremchuk traveled to Poland on October 10 to participate in a veterans’ match ahead of the World Cup 2026 qualifier between Ukraine and Azerbaijan. However, he was stopped by police at Krakow airport.
His brother, Mykhailo Yaremchuk, stated that Ivan only managed to call the family briefly, saying, “They’ve detained me,” before losing contact:
“We don’t know why Vanya was detained. Our acquaintances in Poland called the police and were told it is supposedly related to his work in the Czech Republic.”
It is worth noting that Ivan Yaremchuk won the Cup Winners’ Cup in 1988 and played in the 1986 and 1990 World Cups. Reports also indicate that he suffered from a gambling addiction, which led to losing his home and all his money.
