Shakhtar Donetsk's trip to their "home" leg of the Europa Conference League semifinal against Crystal Palace on Thursday in Poland will take them around 18 hours.
In this never-ending campaign which started back on July 10, Shakhtar are used to this odyssey. They do it for every match in Europe.
But though they're emotionally and physically exhausted, they are motivated by a bigger purpose: they want to ensure the world is not forgetting Ukraine while using their European adventure to provide a moment of escapism for their people.
Shakhtar have been on the move for 12 years. Their last match at their Donbas home was on May 2, 2014, but after Russian-backed separatists invaded that part of Ukraine, the club lived a nomadic existence, playing domestic "home matches" in Lviv, Kharkiv and Kyiv.
When the wholescale Russian invasion of Ukraine happened in Feb. 2022 their European matches were moved outside of Ukraine, with "home" games played across Poland (Warsaw or Krakow), Slovenia (Ljubljana) and Germany (Hamburg and Gelsenkirchen).
Each match requires lengthy coach travel out of Ukraine, and then sometimes a further plane -- the same routine applying for away matches. On Thursday, Shakhtar host Palace in Krakow -- 960 miles away from their spiritual home at the Donbas Arena.
Shakhtar CEO Serhii Palkin recalls a conversation he had with Lech Poznan officials before their home leg of the Conference League round of 16 match.
Shakhtar's trip took 18 hours; Poznan's was 45 minutes. But still Shakhtar have progressed through to the semifinal stage.
"You should understand that your opponent is stronger mentally and physically, but we can compete," Palkin says.
Despite everything thrown at them, you won't hear them bemoan the hand they've been dealt. Far from it.
"For us to get to a semifinal, it means we can offer some kind of positive emotion, and we can show we are alive, that Ukrainian football is alive," Palkin says. "It's important for us to offer this emotional support.
"We've had many years of war, and we know the rest of the world is maybe a bit tired of talking about this war. Whenever we play in Europe, we try to mention what's going on in Ukraine as it's not possible to ignore this or be tired. We have a very dangerous war, so whenever we talk about the club, we need to do our best to mention what's going on here. This is our key point."
Shakhtar's European journey began in the first qualifying round of the Europa League back in July last year. They fell in the third qualifying round to Panathinaikos and entered the Conference League, with the club overcoming AZ Alkmaar in the quarterfinals to tee up this semifinal with Palace, their 46th match of a never-ending season.
This Shakhtar group is young but still has that Brazilian flourish. The club has garnered a reputation as a place where promising talents can develop, before moving onto one of Europe's big hitters.
It's a path which the likes of Willian, Fernandinho, Fred and Kevin all benefited from. Winger Alisson Santana, attacking midfielder Isaque Silva and forward Eguinaldo are all much-admired, but alongside their Brazilian contingent, they prioritise developing Ukrainian talent.
Mykhailo Mudryk, Georgiy Sudakov and Anatoliy Trubin all started their careers there before moving on, and they are excited about the potential of midfielders Viktor Tsukanov and Denys Smetana, among others.
When they won the league in 2023, the squad was predominantly Ukrainian. Staying true to their principles has been critical in building a squad capable of competing in both the league and Europe.
"After Feb. 2022, about 11,000 professional players left Ukraine, including players from our academy who are now in Barcelona or Bayern Munich, for example," Palkin says. "It's a big problem for us, because we lost top talents, and we've had to recover, and invest more in our academy.
"We lost our home, but we didn't lose our identity. If you look at our club before we left Donbas in 2014, it was quality Brazilians and great Ukrainians. Since then, we've stayed as true as we can to the identity.
"We continue to build, to improve our model, and we believe that has brought us results like this semifinal. We prove to everybody we can compete even in these circumstances which are very, very hard, believe me."
And they continue to remain aggrieved at the manner in which several players left after the invasion in Feb. 2022.
When war broke out, FIFA activated a rule which allowed foreign players in Russia and Ukraine to unilaterally suspend their contracts. Shakhtar estimate this cost them as much as €80 million ($94m) in potential transfer revenue, and contested the changes to Annex 7 of the Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players.
"FIFA killed us," sporting director Darijo Srna says.
After their appeals were rejected by FIFA and the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), Shakhtar launched legal action against specific clubs they believed to have received "unjust enrichment" by utilising the clause.
"I've had arguments with FIFA, asking, how can I survive in this situation?" Palkin says. "If you just let them go for free, I cannot sell them or loan them. And they said it's your problem."
But despite everything they deal with, that's not to say they're light touches when it comes to negotiation, however. Their last major departure was Kevin to Fulham in Sept. 2025, where they received a transfer fee of €40 million ($47m).
"To negotiate properly, it's science," Palkin says. "It's not just blah, blah, blah and we're finished. It's a very difficult process."
Shakhtar are top of the Ukrainian league, and have won two of the last three Premier League titles. Under former Turkey international Arda Turan, they're hopeful of adding a second European title to sit alongside the 2009 UEFA Cup.
Turan took charge of Shakhtar in May 2025, replacing Marino Pusic, with the mission of improving on Shakhtar's third-place finish in the 2024-25 season.
"Arda is a young guy, emotional guy, and hungry, full of ambition," Palkin says. "Coaching in Turkey was his comfort zone, he doesn't want to be there. He's afraid of nothing, and brings so much energy -- you'll see him on Thursday, running up and down the line, probably getting five kilometres or so, using lots of energy.
"We're just thankful to him and his staff that they've come to Ukraine to coach Shakhtar in this difficult moment. We've all grown together."
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Palace will offer a stern test. Shakhtar are wary of Palace tapping into the same mentality which saw them win the FA Cup last year, and Srna says if Shakhtar are to progress, then they need to "control the game."
"We must keep the ball, and not make stupid decisions, or give away stupid fouls or freekicks, as Palace are very strong in this. In attack, we have quality and have the quality to create chances," Srna says. "From my experience, Shakhtar can win if we play our game."
And wherever they go, Shakhtar are touched by their support. When the wholescale invasion happened, six million Ukrainians fled their country. That diaspora fills the stands whenever Shakhtar go on the road.
"We are not together anymore, but we have supporters all over the world," Palkin says.
Srna is also mindful of those who are still engaged in active service, defending Ukraine. "I believe that we have full support also from the Front, not just those in Krakow," Srna says.
"A lot of soldiers will be with Shakhtar on Thursday evening, but we can promise that we can fight until the end for Shakhtar, for Ukrainian fans and for our people."
After a gruelling trip to Poland and another to London, Shakhtar are underdogs across the two legs. But they will be buoyed by heart and quiet optimism, carried with the momentum of a bigger cause.
"We are still here. We are playing against an amazing team, Crystal Palace, and for me, this match is 50/50," Srna says. "Whether we get to the final or not, I'm proud of this team. We don't have experience, but we have spirit. And we'll fight until the end."