"No war", no to war: before their often very tense derby, the two Manchester clubs displayed their unity by entering the field for the poster for the 28th day of the English Championship.

Manchester City, which has one of three Ukrainian Premier League players in its squad, defender Oleksandr Zinchenko, sported white t-shirts with the Ukrainian flag and the slogan 'No War' which also appeared on the black t-shirts that wore Manchester United.

During the minute of applause in tribute to Ukraine and its people, a large banner with the same call for an end to hostilities was unfurled in one of the corners of the Etihad stadium.

On all Premier League grounds, the players gathered in the central circle, took part in a minute of applause in unison with the spectators.

Manchester City and Manchester United players take part in a minute of unison applause with spectators in support of Ukraine following the Russian invasion ahead of their Premier League Matchday 28 derby on March 6, 2022 at the Etihad Stadium Oli SCARFF AFP

Before the kick-off of the Watford-Arsenal match, an entire stand on Vicarage Road took on the colors of the Ukrainian flag thanks to a "tifo" made with posters placed on the seats

In Spain, Real Madrid unfurled a Ukrainian flag on Saturday evening with the message "All with Ukraine" on the lawn and on the stands of the Santiago-Bernabéu stadium before their match against Real Sociedad counting for the 27th day of La Liga.

The players and substitutes of both teams entered the pitch with a white t-shirt stamped with the same message in black, and took a picture together behind the Ukrainian flag.

The Velodrome in blue and yellow

"Tonight, we want to show all our support for the Ukrainian people, a people who suffer the injustice of a war. That's why today, our player Andriy Lunin will receive all the affection of the Santiago-Bernabéu", said the Madrid stadium announcer.

Lunin, understudy for Thibaut Courtois in goal for Real, did not take part in the trip to neighboring Rayo Vallecano last weekend.

In Germany, the red and white logo of the Bundesliga has been reformatted in the blue and yellow colors of Ukraine, in the stadiums and on all visuals of the live broadcast.

Symbolic actions were once again carried out in the stadiums to denounce the war and underline the solidarity with the Ukrainian victims.

Players of Bayern Munich and Bayer Leverkusen are gathered around the message "No to war", before the start of their match of the 25th day of the Bundesliga, on March 5, 2022 in Munich Christof STACHE AFP

Several German clubs have announced that they have made donations to NGOs involved in helping refugees.

Bayern donated 100,000 euros to "SOS-Children's Village" in Ukraine, and called on their fans to complete this donation.

Mönchengladbach also indicated having paid nearly 94,269 euros.

In Ligue 1, during Saint-Etienne-Metz, the Greens did not wear their name on the back, but the inscription "Peace for all" (peace for all).

The jerseys then had to be autographed to be auctioned on Monday for the benefit of the French Humanitarian Firefighters.

"Peace for all" ("Peace for all") written on the back of the jerseys of the Saint-Etienne players, during their home match of the 27th day of Ligue 1 against Metz, on March 6, 2022 at the Stade Geoffroy-Guichard JEAN-PHILIPPE KSIAZEK AFP

Olympique de Marseille has chosen to illuminate its Stade Vélodrome in the blue and yellow colors of the Ukrainian flag.

OM also announced that the light panels around the lawn would also light up in the colors of the Ukrainian flag during matches and that messages of support for the Ukrainian people would be broadcast on giant screens.

A controversial Z

Through its foundation, the Marseille club will also organize a collection of clothing, food, blankets and hygiene products.

MotoGP, which made its 2022 comeback this weekend in Qatar, posed for its traditional class photo behind a banner bearing the words "United for peace" on Thursday.

Words also displayed during the television broadcasts of the Grand Prix from Friday to Sunday.

MotoGP riders pose behind a "United for Peace" banner on March 3, 2022 in Losail, three days before the Qatar Grand Prix, the 1st of the season KARIM JAAFAR AFP / Archives

Several pilots, like the Italian Franco Morbidelli, also sported on their helmet a sticker "Give peace a chance" (Give peace a chance).

In Finland, during the events of the Biathlon World Cup stage, athletes showed their support for Ukraine by decorating their bibs, rifles or overalls with Ukrainian flags and messages for peace.

Rare discordant notes, Chelsea supporters chanted the name of the Russian owner of their club, Roman Abramovich, during the minute of applause in honor of the Ukrainian people on Saturday and the Russian gymnast Ivan Kuliak had drawn a Z, symbol of the forces Russian armies in Ukraine, on his jersey at the Doha World Cup where he took 3rd place in the parallel bars competition won by the Ukrainian Illia Kovtun.

© 2022 AFP