Chapecoense to be awarded Copa Sudamericana crown

After 19 Chapecoense players died en route to the first leg of the Copa Sudamericana final in Medellin, Colombia, the Brazilian club has been posthumously awarded the title. Colombian side Atletico Nacional, who was slated to face the side that rose from the fourth-tier of Brazilian football, asked the South American Football Federation (CONMEBOL) to name Chapecoense the honourary winner. Nacional's request came to fruition Sunday.
"CONMEBOL have testified that they will crown Chapecoense as champions of the Copa Sudamericana," the federation's interim president, Ivan Tozzo said courtesy of the Telegraph's Callum Davis.
"We are receiving support from all federations. The CBF, CONMEBOL, FIFA, and especially the people of Chapeco," Tozzo continued. "Right now we are beginning to rebuild the team. People want football, people love football in Chapeco."
Sunday's decision comes a day after over a 100,000 supporters gathered at the club's stadium to remember the 19 players who perished in the plane crash that took the lives of 71 people. FIFA president Gianni Infantino, Clarence Seedorf, and Carles Puyol were among those in attendance on a night when Chapecoense was scheduled to have been halfway to an unprecedented title. Instead, an emotional candlelight tribute was paid to a club whose heroic, and unlikely continental run was snuffed out before it had the chance to take place.