Football
Associated Press 7y

Chapecoense and Atletico Nacional announce Recopa final dates

Brazilian club Chapecoense and Colombia's Atletico Nacional, bonded by an air crash in November in which 71 people died, have said they will play a South American cup final next week.

The first leg of the Recopa Sudamericana final, between the champions of the Copa Sudamericana and the Copa Libertadores, will be staged in the southern Brazil city of Chapeco on April 4.

The return leg will be played in Medellin on May 10, the clubs said on Monday.

In November, 19 members of the Chapecoense team died in the crash, which happened outside Medellin, as they travelled to play Nacional in the first leg of the Copa Sudamericana final.

After the tragedy, Atletico Nacional pronounced Chapecoense champions, and the South American confederation agreed.

Of the 77 passengers on the flight, 71 died including players, journalists and club officials.

Chapecoense have been slowly rebuilding with new players and sponsors, but families of the victims are struggling without financial compensation for their loss.

The Brazilian club needed a special authorisation to host the home game at the 22,000-seat Arena Conda, as confederation rules say a minimum of 40,000 seats must be available for continental finals.

In a statement, CONMEBOL said the 200,000 residents of Chapeco want to "pay, in their own city, a special tribute to Atletico Nacional for their actions of solidarity and support offered at the time of the air crash."

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