We recall the main events of 2025

Licka? Karpin? Gusev!

The team spent the first four months of the year under the guidance of Marcel Licka, who left his post four rounds before the end of the season. Under his leadership, the White-Blues played 78 matches, winning 40, drawing 17, and losing 21. The Czech coach will undoubtedly remain in the hearts of fans thanks to his openness and the magical spring of 2024, when the White-Blues came within a goal of winning the championship.

Rolan Gusev was appointed acting head coach, and he immediately enjoyed a three-match winning streak, including a victory over Spartak. Only in the final round did Dynamo lose the championship match in Krasnodar and finish fifth in the Russian Premier League.

In the summer, Dynamo invited Valery Karpin, who began combining his duties with the club and the Russian national team. However, the team's performance under his leadership didn't take off: the white-and-blues stalled from the very start, making numerous defensive errors and winning only eight of 22 matches. Following a home defeat to Akron, Valeri Georgievich decided to leave Dynamo and focus on coaching the national team.

Following Karpin's departure, Gusev returned as acting head coach, with the same four matches to play for. The blue-and-white alumnus began with a 3-0 home rout of Dynamo Makhachkala, then held on to the lead they had earned in St. Petersburg in the cup quarterfinals against Zenit. The year ended with a 2-1 defeat to Akhmat and a 1-1 draw in the derby with Spartak. As a result, Rolan Aleksandrovich was relieved of his "acting" title and confirmed as head coach until the end of the season.

"It's a great honor for me to take over my hometown club, where I took my first steps in football. I understand the full responsibility and expectations of our fans and management. Dynamo is a great club that should always compete for the top spots. We'll work hard this winter to properly prepare for the second half of the season," Gusev said.

Two crucial cup semifinals

In the spring of 2025, Dynamo played in the Russian Cup semifinals, twice. After advancing past Lokomotiv in the quarterfinals on aggregate, the blue-and-whites advanced to the RPL Path semifinals and faced the Moscow army men, losing to them over two legs (1-2 away and 0-0 home). However, the tournament offered the losing team another chance, this time in the Regional Path playoffs.

At this stage of the Cup, only one match was scheduled to be played, which took place in Moscow at Lukoil Arena. Dynamo lost 1-2 and was eliminated from further competition. The blue-and-whites will have a chance to avenge their recent opponents in March 2026: Dynamo will once again face Spartak in the semifinals, but this time in the RPL Path. By the way, tickets for the home match are already available for purchase on our website.

Dynamo's international squad has grown

In 2025, Dynamo signed seven new players: two in the winter (Danil Glebov and Juan Cáceres), and the rest in the summer (Maksim Osipenko, Ivan Sergeyev, Bakhtiyor Zainutdinov, Rubens, and Anton Miranchuk). Six of the seven newcomers represent their national teams: Glebov, Osipenko, Sergeyev, and Miranchuk represent Russia, Cáceres represents Paraguay, and Zainutdinov represents Kazakhstan.

Cáceres and Glebov made successful debuts for the white-and-blues. The Paraguayan defended the right side, was fierce in tackles, and was constantly active in attack. Danil played confidently in the defensive midfield and scored a crucial goal against Spartak in the 28th round of the 2024/25 RPL season.

In just five months, Sergeev became the team's top scorer this year, scoring 10 goals in 26 matches for Dynamo. Rubens, Zainutdinov, and Osipenko were regular starters, while Miranchuk was remembered for his artistic passes.

Gladyshev's Four-Goal Score for the Russian National Team

Yaroslav Gladyshev received his first call-up to the Russian national team for the June training camp and made his debut for the national team on June 6 in a 1-1 draw with Nigeria, coming on as a substitute in the 61st minute. The Dynamo forward's real breakthrough came in the next match against Belarus, which Gladyshev started.

The Russian national team won 4-1, with Gladyshev scoring all his goals – in the 21st, 24th, 33rd, and 52nd minutes. His four-goal scoring in 31 minutes is by far the fastest in the national team's history. Moreover, Yaroslav became only the third player to score four goals for the national team, the others being Artem Dzyuba (who scored two) and Oleg Salenko (who scored five at the 1994 World Cup). As a result, Yaroslav became the national team’s top scorer in 2025.

Chávez wins the Gold Cup, Cáceres and Marichal qualify for the World Cup

In early June, Luis Chávez won the CONCACAF Gold Cup with Mexico. In the tournament final, Chávez's national team defeated the United States 2-1 to win the trophy. The Dynamo midfielder played in two group stage matches before suffering a serious injury and undergoing knee surgery. This is the 29-year-old midfielder's third title with the national team: in 2023, he won his first Gold Cup, and in March 2025, he won the CONCACAF Nations League.

Cáceres helped Paraguay qualify for the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. The Dynamo defender played in 11 of the 12 qualifying matches and provided one assist. For Paraguay, qualifying for the World Cup was a national celebration, as their last World Cup appearance was way back in 2010.

Nicolás Marichal, who made his debut for Uruguay in September 2024, also helped his national team qualify for the 2026 World Cup. Nico played in two matches – against Paraguay and Venezuela – and Uruguay qualified directly for the World Cup from fourth place in the South American qualifying tournament.

A Challenging Year for Konstantin Tyukavin

2025 proved to be a truly testing year for Konstantin Tyukavin. In his first match after the season resumed, which took place in Rostov-on-Don on March 2, Tyukavin suffered a torn cruciate ligament in his knee. He underwent surgery and only returned to the field in September.

This serious injury didn't stop Kostya from continuing to collect personal awards and reach new heights. In April, Tyukavin won the sixth International Sports and Bookmaking Award – the RB-2025 Award. In May, he extended his contract with Dynamo until 2030. In June, he was named the goal scorer of the 2024/25 season (against Spartak, of course). In October, he scored his 50th goal for Dynamo. In December, he received the TASS "For Loyalty" award for "Best Alumnus."

Dynamo's First Hat-Trick at VTB Arena

What the Blue-and-Whites' fans had been waiting for so long has finally happened. A Dynamo player scored the first hat-trick at their home stadium since its renovation. 21-year-old Ulvi Babayev, a product of the club's Academy, made history by scoring three goals against Krylia Sovetov in the Russian Cup. It's fitting that this happened on October 22nd – the birthday of club legend and the best goalkeeper of the 20th century, Lev Yashin.

One player had scored three goals at VTB Arena before, but Babayev became the first Dynamo player to do so. And 20 years had passed since Derlei's last hat-trick at Petrovsky Park in 2005.

We also note the successful debut for the White-Blues of another academy graduate, goalkeeper Kurban Rasulov, who kept clean sheets in three consecutive cup matches and one RPL match (for a total of seven appearances). At the end of the year, Kurban was ranked among the top 10 goalkeepers under 20 playing outside the world's top five leagues by the International Center for Sports Research in Football. The total number of academy graduates who have played for the first team in 2025 has reached 13.

Club Academy Successes

The Lev Yashin Dynamo Academy has once again confirmed its status as one of the best in Russia. In 2025, Dynamo Academy graduates performed strongly in RFU and Moscow Football Federation tournaments, winning five prestigious gold medals and several individual awards.

The Dynamo team born in 2011 won the RFU Cup and the Club League Summer Championship, the Dynamo players born in 2013 took first place in the Club League Summer and Winter Championships, and the Dynamo team born in 2009 won gold in the Youth Football League-2. The white-and-blues born in 2011 also added two silver medals to their collection: at the Russian Championship and the Club League Winter Championship.

The Dynamo coach born in 2011 also won individual MFF awards. Alexey Dubinin (Moscow's best youth coach) and Dynamo head coach Alexander Shchegolkov (born in 2013), as well as footballers Matvey Abdulkhalikov and Sergey Chuev (winners of the Golden Ball award), and Mikhail Kukhnikov and Ilya Pitertsev (recipients of the Golden Boot). Andrey Shchadilov was named the RFU Cup's best goalkeeper, and Abdulkhalikov was named its best player. Matvey and Ivan Zhunaev were also named the Dynamo Academy's best players of the year.

The Ups and Downs of Dynamo-2

After a triumphant victory in the Second League's Division B group (2024), the second team of the white-blues was promoted to Division A, where they played the first half of the 2025 season in the Silver Group. Eight wins out of 18 matches were enough to take fourth place and qualify for the Gold Group (from where they can advance to the First League).

However, things didn't go well for Dynamo-2 there. After starting the season with five consecutive draws, Dynamo suffered eight defeats, finishing last in the group, and will again play in the Silver Group in the spring. The failure in the Gold Group was offset by the team's performance at the Arena Khimki – it was there that Dynamo-2 played their home games in 2025 and enjoyed strong fan support.

In early December, the coaching staff, led by Pavel Alpatov, took part in a gala match between the FNL players' team and the Media League team. Alpatov took charge of the FNL team, which included Kirill Panchenko. The match took place in Abkhazia and ended with a 4.5-1 victory for the FNL.

Farewell to Anton Shunin and Kirill Panchenko

In 2025, two iconic Dynamo players retired. In January, Kirill Panchenko made the decision to join the Dynamo-2 coaching staff, becoming Alpatov's assistant. He played his final game for Dynamo, coming on late in the match against OFK Belgrade in the BetBoom Bratsky Cup on June 30.

Another Dynamo legend, Anton Shunin, was honored at the match against Akron on May 18. The celebrated goalkeeper, who dedicated 30 years to our club, met with fans at an autograph session, took his first kick, received a commemorative medal from the Dynamo Society for the development of the Dynamo movement, and then went to the fan stand to energize the team for victory. After the match, Shunin gave a touching speech, thanking the fans for their support over the years.