The Death Match: Football, Resistance, and Myth in Nazi-Occupied Ukraine | Part Two

Welcome to It Was What It Was, the football history podcast. In this episode, co-hosts Rob Draper and Jonathan Wilson bring their second and final part of their series on the Death Match, one of the most mythologized football games of all time.

Occurring in Nazi-occupied Kyiv, Ukraine, this match between Start, a team formed mostly of former Dinamo Kiev players, and Flakelf, a Luftwaffe team, has become a symbol of resistance. The hosts discuss the brutal context of the occupation, the complex legacies of the players, and the role football played in these extraordinary historical circumstances. Jonathan Wilson critically examines how much of the narrative is based on verifiable facts and how much may have been post-war Soviet propaganda.

This episode provides a nuanced understanding of how football intersected with geopolitics, resistance, and national identity during one of history's darkest periods.

00:00 Introduction to the Death Match Series

01:27 Historical Context: Nazi Occupation and Football

02:26 The Rise of Team Start

03:07 Early Matches and Growing Tensions

04:21 Embarrassing Defeats for Axis Teams

05:28 Public Perception and Propaganda

06:29 The Turning Point: German Concerns

14:13 The First Clash with Flakelf

18:05 Setting the Stage for the Death Match

26:06 The Referee's Influence and Game Dynamics

27:10 Halftime Tensions and Orders to Lose

28:39 Second Half and Controversial Moments

32:35 Post-Match Arrests and Interrogations

35:50 Life in the Prison Camp

43:10 Escape and Kyiv's Liberation

44:33 Legacy and Mythology of the Death Match

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