Iya Andrushchak appointed head coach of the Ukrainian national women's team

At the UAF Executive Committee meeting, Iya Andrushchak, a former footballer and midfielder of the Ukrainian women's national team, was elected as the new head coach of the blue and yellow team. She replaced Volodymyr Pyatenko, whose contract with the team had expired. This was announced by UAF President Andriy Shevchenko during a press conference, as reported by UNN.

The Ukrainian women's national team is starting its journey to the World Cup. The girls have a difficult group - Spain, England, and Iceland. I want to thank the former coach, Volodymyr Pyatenko, who led the team to Division "A" of the Nations League. He did a very good job, but we are moving forward. The women's national team will start this cycle with a new head coach. Iya Andrushchak

He noted that Andrushchak had been a leader of the Ukrainian national team for over 11 years, has significant success as a coach, and also became the first woman to lead a men's team in Ukraine.

For me, it's a great responsibility to make this team competitive on the European arena, recognizable, and to be respected in the world and in Europe. Currently, UEFA and FIFA pay a lot of attention to the development of women's football. I thank the UAF for supporting this development, for supporting these initiatives. I wish us all to be in the trend of women's football in the coming years

Addition

Iya Andrushchak is a former footballer, a midfielder of the Ukrainian women's national team, who played 58 matches (2 goals) for it.

The 38-year-old specialist previously managed the Vorskla U-19 youth team (2023-2024), becoming the first female coach in Ukraine to lead a men's team. In 2025, she became the head coach of the Vorskla women's club.

The Ukrainian women's national team will participate in the 2027 Nations League, which will be a qualifying tournament in the UEFA zone for the 2027 World Cup. According to the draw results, the blue and yellow team will play in Group 3 of League A along with the teams of Spain, England, and Iceland.

Our girls will start the tournament on March 3 with a match against England, and on the 7th, they will play against Spain. With the support of the Turkish Football Federation and in agreement with UEFA, these matches will take place in Antalya at the Mardan Stadium.

Calendar of matches for the Ukrainian women's national team in Group A3 of the 2027 World Cup qualifiers:

• 03.03.2026. Ukraine - England;
• 07.03.2026. Ukraine - Spain;
• 14.04.2026. Iceland - Ukraine;
• 18.04.2026. Spain - Ukraine;
• 05.06.2026. Ukraine - Iceland;
• 09.06.2026. England - Ukraine.

European Qualifiers for the 2027 World Cup

League A

Group 1: Sweden, Italy, Denmark, Serbia;

Group 2: France, Netherlands, Poland, Ireland;

Group 3: Spain, England, Iceland, Ukraine;

Group 4: Germany, Norway, Austria, Slovenia. 

The European qualification will take place in three stages. Group stage matches will be held on March 3 and 7, April 14 and 18, June 5 and 9, 2026, in three leagues - A (16 teams), B (16), and C (21).

The starting position of each team in the leagues is determined based on the results of the 2025 Nations League. Ukraine will play in League A.

The winners of the four groups in League A will directly qualify for the 2027 World Cup. The remaining spots will be contested in playoff rounds in October-December 2026. In the first round, teams finishing second and third in League A will play against the winners of the six groups in League C and the best teams finishing second there. Eight winners will advance to the second round.

Recall

The Ukrainian Football Association is not considering dismissing the head coach of the Ukrainian national football team, Serhiy Rebrov.