Colombia plane crash: Manchester United, Torino, Zambia and the aftermath of other football tragedies that rocked the world
Offers to help tragic Chapecoense pour in from all around globe after flight accident which saw 71 people lose their lives
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THE world watched in horror as the news filtered through of the devastation that came from the tragic Chapecoense plane crash.
The Brazilian side was due to play in its first-ever continental final — in the Copa Sudamerica against Atletico Nacional.
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Now, we look for what will happen next. Other sides have offered to support the tragic club with pledges to loan players, see them exempt from relegation for three years and even handed the trophy they en route to play.
There have been famous plane crashes the past which other clubs have suffered — and we take a look back at the aftermath and the effects on the sides and football in general.
Superga: Torino — May 4, 1949
EVERY player on board lost their life, and the crash wiped out almost the entire Italy national side.
Il Grande Torino — which had won the previous four Serie A titles and had already been crowned champions in that campaign — were returning from a friendly against Benfica.
All 31 people on board died, including captain Valentino Mazzola, whose son would win back-to-back European Cups for Il Grande Inter in 1964 and 1965.
The feted city of Turin symbolised hope in post-war Italy, with many travelling from the desolate south in search of work, wealth and prosperity.
The crash devastated the nation and all Serie A clubs fielded youth team players in their next match in honour of the champions.
It also meant Italy had to completely change their philosophy given the loss of such attacking talent.
The Azzurri forfeited their participation in the 1950 World Cup and worked on a new system which focused primarily on defence.
Even today this day, the iconic Catenaccio is a symbol of Italian football.
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Munich Air Disaster: Manchester United — February 6, 1958
A TRAGEDY which saw England’s first participants in European football completely wiped out.
Eight players lost their lives — including 21-year-old Duncan Edwards, who had finished third in the Ballon d’Or standings the previous year.
England were one of the favourites for the 1958 World Cup, but manager, Sir Walter Winterbottom lost many of his first-team stars.
United are the only team in history to have been legally allowed to play cup-tied in players in FA Cup, as they were given special dispensation.
Rival clubs offered to help the stricken Red Devils, while Real Madrid even suggested loaning out the great Alfredo Di Stefano for a year.
In the end, United signed players from Aston Villa and Blackpool.
Jimmy Murphy took over managerial duties while Sir Matt Busby lay in hospital.
The Scot made a remarkable recovery after he was twice read his last rites — and led the club to European Cup glory just ten years later.
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Libreville Gabon Disaster: Zambia — April 27, 1993
THE national side was en route to Dakar in Senegal for a World Cup qualifier when the plane caught fire.
It was a sporting disaster of epic proportions in Zambia, with the side’s expectations high.
This group of players were more or less the same team which had thrashed Italy 4-0 at the Olympic Games five years earlier.
The victims were buried outside the Independence Stadium in Lusaka and the sit became known as ‘Heroes’ Acre’.
Against all odds, reached the African Cup of Nations a year later, where they lost against Nigeria.
However, they won their first-ever major honour in 2012, when they won the tournament in Libreville —just a hundred metres from the crash site.