When 13-year-old Nikita Semenow passed Erling Haaland at the kick-off, many of the 35,000 spectators in Dortmund's Westfalenstadion had a lump in their throats.

The junior footballer from Dynamo Kyiv fled with his mother from an air raid shelter via Poland to Berlin, and now he was allowed to open the benefit game between Borussia and the Ukrainian flagship club.

It was just one of many signs of peace, large and small, on a memorable evening.

The fact that BVB lost 2: 3 (1: 3) against Dynamo was only a minor matter.

Goals by Vitaliy Buyalskiy (9th minute) and Vladyslav Vanat (11th/35th) to make it 3-2 (3-1) for Dynamo Kyiv were celebrated by the fans of both teams.

Jamie Bynoe-Gittens (4th) and Tom Rothe (65th) contributed the goals for BVB.

Where otherwise black and yellow ruled, the colors blue and yellow of the Ukraine determined the scenery that evening.

"Stop War" was written on the boards, and the national anthem played before kick-off.

"It's about setting an example - and earning a little money," said BVB Managing Director Hans-Joachim Watzke on ZDF, which broadcast live.

The proud figure of 400,000 euros finally came together.

After similar games by the 16-time Ukrainian champions from Kyiv in Warsaw, Istanbul and Cluj, the Bundesliga club probably contributed to the highest revenue from this mission to date.

"We'll do something decent with it, we have a lot of experience there," said Watzke.

Former Bundesliga professional Andrei Voronin thanked for the support.

“We hope that we will soon be able to play games like this again in Ukraine.

I pray every day that it will be over as soon as possible.

Unfortunately, we don't see an end to it," said the long-time Ukraine international.

There was great unanimity in the stands.

"Stop War - Stop Putin", "Save Mariupol" or simply "Peace" was on the posters when the players stepped onto the pitch to the sound of the football anthem "You'll never walk alone" - the guests each wrapped in a national flag .

Ivan Matviychuk from Shakhtar Donetsk U17s, who fled Ukraine with his mother and grandfather and currently lives in Dortmund, helped stadium announcer Norbert Dickel read out the line-ups.

Among the spectators were also DFB President Bernd Neuendorf and NRW Prime Minister Hendrik Wüst.

Neuendorf spoke of an important message to Ukraine during the game.

"There the tanks roll, the people live in permanent fear.

A game like that means an important change,” said the DFB boss.

At BVB there was never any doubt about the execution of the encounter.

“It is nothing new for us that we stand up for people who are in need.

We did that when the flood came, that's a matter of course for us," said Reinhard Rauball on ZDF: "As President of Borussia Dortmund, I'm proud of those who came today and made sure that people got something to eat and get a drink".

Ukrainians could book free tickets for the game, and all fans were offered solidarity bracelets.

Wüst also spoke of a "strong sign" against the war: "Thanks to Borussia Dortmund for this great campaign!"