Chapecoense website goes down as hundreds of thousands flock to donate money to club decimated by plane crash

A campaign encouraging people to donate money to tragic football club Chapecoense has caused their official website to go down.

Well-wishers have flocked to the site to lend their support and financial backing, but it is struggling to deal with the sheer volume of people.

It is understood that the website is now up and running after reports in the Brazilian media broke the news.

People are looking to help out after almost all of the Chapecoense players were wiped out in a plane crash in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

The team were travelling to Medellin airport in Colombia to play Atletico Nacional in the final of the Copa Sudamericana.

But the aircraft crashed into a mountain, killing 71 of the 77 people on board, including all but three of the Brazilian outfit’s players.

Jorge Gloss, a fan of rivals Gremio, appealed to people on Facebook to lend a hand by going to their website and becoming a member.

He said: “You can do more than just post about Chape.

“After the tragedy, the club will continue to exist and it’s gonna have to rebuild, including to provide support to the families and other players.

“If you enter the site, you will see how you can become a member of the club from $16,00 to $185,00 a month.

“That’s right, with the money you spend on lunch you can do something for the team. Brazil is with Chape, imagine what can happen if that’s multiplied by millions.”

Tributes were held in Colombia in memory of the players who died

A moving tribute was also held in the Atansio Stadium – the planned venue for the final – where 45,000 Brazilians and Colombians came together to mourn the dead.

All football in South America has been suspended until further notice, while Atletico Nacional have asked that the Copa Sudamericana trophy be handed to Chapecoense.

Link to the club’s official website: