Brazil beat Colombia in Chapecoense memorial friendly

Updated: May 17, 2023, 05:49 am

Dudu and Diego celebrate after scoring a goal in a friendly between Brazil and Colombia.
Dudu and Diego celebrate after scoring a goal in a friendly between Brazil and Colombia.
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Brazil beat Colombia 1-0 in a friendly that raised over £300,000 for the families of the Chapecoense players and staff who were killed in a plane crash in November.

The friendly at the Olympic Stadium in Rio De Janeiro was decided by Dudu's early second-half goal, but that was just a footnote as fans remembered those who died in the disaster which included 43 Chapecoense players and staff on their way to the Copa Sudamericana final.

Tributes were paid to the three surviving players -- goalkeeper Jackson Follmann, defender Neto and winger Alan Ruschel -- before kickoff as they were paraded on the pitch.

And more than 1.2 million Brazilian Real (£300,000) was raised for the families of those that died.

A post on Brazil's official Twitter feed said: "The most important result £JogodaAmizade: more than R 1,200,000.00 for £FamiliaChapecoense.''

Chapecoense drew 2-2 against Brazilian champions Palmeiras on Saturday in their first match since the crash.

The club has rebuilt their squad with most of its 22 new players arriving on loan from other clubs.