Tayanna to perform at UEFA Women's Champions League final opening ceremony

UEFA has announced that Ukrainian pop sensation Tayanna will perform at the UEFA Women's Champions League final opening ceremony in Kyiv on Thursday 24 May.

The 33-year-old singer-songwriter, who was born in Chernivtsi in western Ukraine, has become one of the country's top musical artists in recent years. She has collaborated with renowned producer and director Alan Badoev and has worked with artists such as Dan Bălan, Arash and Lara Fabian.

Tayanna received critical acclaim for her album Trimai Mene (Keep Me), which was recognised as the best Ukrainian release of 2017. Meanwhile, her single Shkoda (Mischief) has been viewed over three million times on YouTube, and she won the prestigious Ukrainian 'Breakthrough of the Year' award at the M1 TV Channel Music Awards.

"It is a dream come true to be able to perform in my home country before such an important event," said Tayanna. "I am really looking forward to putting on a show and being part of such an exciting spectacle – it will be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."

Tayanna's performance will take place minutes before the start of the game, and will involve around 30 dancers supporting her act. The UEFA Women's Champions League final ambassador, Ukrainian international midfielder Iya Andrushchak, will also bring the trophy on to the pitch in the lead-up to kick-off.

"We are delighted Tayanna will be performing at the UEFA Women's Champions League final," said UEFA's head of women's football Nadine Kessler, who won the trophy with Turbine Potsdam in 2010 as well as with Wolfsburg in 2013 and 2014. "Women's football is developing in Ukraine and we hope the appearance of Tayanna will attract new audiences to the final, who will have the opportunity to see first-hand what an amazing sport this is and hopefully gain inspiration and want to become footballers themselves."

This season's UEFA Women's Champions League final will be played at the Valeriy Lobanovskiy Dynamo Stadium in Kyiv on 24 May and will pit Wolfsburg against Lyon. Tickets for the final will cost between UAH 70 (about €2.35) and UAH 100 (€3.20) and can be purchased via the following link: https://esport.in.ua/en/UWCLF2018