Oleksandr Usyk has signed a pro football contract
Oleksandr Usyk, the reigning unified WBO, WBA and IBF heavyweight champion, has signed a contract with Ukrainian football club FC Polissia.
Usyk did make an appearance for Polissia as a substitute in a friendly match last year and has now solidified his relationship with the club with a one-year deal.
The unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk, known as 'The Cat' for his goalkeeping prowess when younger, played a football match at the Winter Cup friendly tournament for FC Polissya Zhytomyr in 2022.
After the match, Usyk commented, “I always dreamed of playing for a professional team when I was still a kid who was training. But it so happened that I took up boxing, a wonderful sport. Well, at the age of 35, my childhood dream has come true.”
On February 4, Turkey hosted a football match between Polissya and FC Veres (Rivne, Ukraine), which ended with a score of 2-1 in favour of Polissya.
The team officially announced after: "The president of the club, Hennadiy Butkevich, and Oleksandr Usyk concluded an official agreement on football cooperation for one year.
"Usyk will perform under number 17."
The club stated that further details as to what the "football co-operation" agreement would entail will be revealed later.
Usyk is preparing to defend his hoard of belts to WBA mandatory challenegr Daniel Dubois on August 26 in Wroclaw, Poland.
It will be Usyk's first fight in a year since defeating Anthony Joshua in their rematch in Saudi Arabia.
Usyk's negotiations with Tyson Fury for an undisputed heavyweight championship fight ground to a halt earlier this year but the clamour to see that fight will likely only increase if both come through their next bouts.
"Let's make it happen," Usyk said of a potential bout against Fury, adding: "I am ready.
"After I fight Dubois I am ready to go, [but] my main focus now is August 26."
In the meantime Usyk looks like he will extend his sporting interests from boxing into football as well.