South American football confederation CONMEBOL have awarded the Copa Sudamericana to Chapecoense.
The Brazilian club lost 19 first-team players, coaches and club officials at the end of November when an aircraft taking them to the first leg of the final crashed in the mountains outside Medellin in Colombia.
Seventy one people died in the crash in total and there were six survivors, including three players.
Chapecoense had been due to play Colombian club Atletico Nacional in the two-legged final of Latin America's No 2 club event.
And the governing body of South American soccer announced on Monday, following a request from Atletico: "CONMEBOL awards the title for the 2016 Copa Sudamericana championship to Chapecoense."
Chapecoense will therefore qualify automatically for next season's Copa Libertadores, the continent's top tournament.
The club will face Atletico Nacional, who won the Copa Libertadores earlier this year, in what will be an emotional two-game series next year between the continent's two club champions
Chapecoesne may field a team of players borrowed from other clubs in the matches.
In recognition of Atletico's request for Chapecoense to be named the Copa winners, CONMEBOL have awarded them a special "CONMEBOL Centennial Fair Play Award" and $1m (£790,000).
It said in a statement: "For CONMEBOL there is no greater example of the 'spirit of peace, understanding and fair play' set forth as an objective of our institution than the solidarity, consideration and respect shown by Atletico
National towards its brothers from Chapecoense."
Brazil's leading football clubs have also pledged to loan players to Chapecoense for free and asked for them to be safeguarded from relegation from the top flight for the next three seasons.
Former Brazil forward Ronaldinho and ex-Argentina international Juan Roman Riquelme have reportedly offered to play for the club, while another Barcelona old boy, Eidur Gudjohnsen, has also offered his services.
A minute's silence will be held ahead of all of this week's Champions League and Europa League matches as a mark of respect to those who died.
0 comments:
Post a Comment