In a statement issued on Tuesday morning, Atlético Nacional requested that CONMEBOL — South American soccer’s governing body — award the Copa Sudamericana championship to Chapecoense following their tragic plane crash.
Atlético Nacional asks for Chapecoense to be awarded Copa Sudamericana title following plane crash
Chapecoense’s plane crashed in Colombia on Monday night, killing 71 people. Their opponents have requested that they be awarded the title.
Photo by Alan Pedro/Getty Images
On Monday night, a plane carrying the Chapecoense squad, coaches, directors, journalists and guests crashed outside of Medellín. The team was traveling to Colombia to take on Atlético Nacional in the first leg of the Copa Sudamericana final. Only three players survived the accident.
Here’s the end of Atlético Nacional’s statement, in English.
After being very concerned about the human side and thinking about the competitive aspect, we want to publish this statement in which Atlético Nacional invites CONMEBOL to deliver the Copa Sudamericana title to Associacao Chapecoense de Futebol as honorary laurel to this great loss and posthumous tribute to the victims of the fatal accident that has caused our sport to mourn. For our part, and forever, Chapecoense is champion of Copa Sudamericana 2016.
CONMEBOL has already confirmed that they’ve suspended operations until further notice. In the event that Atlético Nacional’s request is not granted, it would be nearly impossible for Chapecoense to field a team.
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