Ukraine revives annexed Crimean club Tavria

Ukraine is reviving former Crimean soccer club Tavria Simferopol following Russian annexation last year. (Efrem Lukatsky/AP)

Ukraine says it is trying to revive a former champion football club from Crimea after it was dissolved following the Russian annexation of the peninsula.

Tavria Simferopol, which won the first Ukrainian title in 1992, was shut down after Russia took over Crimea in March last year, and a new club, TSK, formed using its stadium.

The Ukrainian Football Federation’s executive committee voted on Thursday to revive Tavria, which will now be based in the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson in a region bordering Crimea.

Federation president Andriy Pavelko said in a statement the aim was "to revive our legendary club, the first champion of independent Ukraine," and that Tavria’s former president, Serhiy Kunitsyn, was in charge of the project.

It was not immediately clear when Tavria could resume competing, although it was not included in plans for next season.

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