Chapecoense, a club like no other.
Chapecoense - An incredible football story
The School of Football summarises the incredible story of Chapecoense, the club that had to literally re-build from the ashes.
On the 13th January 2021, the club from the Brazilian city of Chapecó gained promotion to Série A just one year after being relegated and just 4 years after the tragic plane crash which shocked the world and so tragically took the lives of 71 people.
The club was founded in 1973 and has always been a relatively small club. They played in the top flight just once in 1978 before they gained promotion in 2014 and until 2016 the club had never won a major trophy.
Fatal Air Crash
In 2016 the club was in the midst of its most successful season and when they beat San Lorenzo in the semi-final of the Copa Sudamericana they created history and had qualified for the biggest game in the club’s history.
On the 28th of November 2016, the club changed forever when flight LaMia 2933 carrying 77 people crashed as it approached Medellín ahead of the first leg of the final against Atlético Nacional.
Tragically 71 people were killed, including 21 journalists and all but 3 of the Chapecoense staff who were on board the flight, left-back Alan Ruschel, goalkeeper Jakson Follmann who’s injuries saw him have one of his legs amputated and centre back Neto.
Rebuilding the Club
On December the 4th Nacional conceded the trophy to Chapecoense. Initially, after the events, fellow Brazilian clubs offered to send them players for free and pleaded with the FA to make them immune from relegation for 3 years, yet Chapecoense declined, saying they wanted to rebuild properly.
As the winners of the Copa Sudamericana, they qualified for the Copa Libertadores for the first time in their history, the biggest domestic competition in South American football. With a team made up free signings, youth players and 2 survivors of the crash they won their first game in the competition against Venezuelan side Zulia.
After two years of rebuilding in the top flight, the club was eventually relegated from Série A in November 2019 almost exactly 3 years after the crash.
However, against all the odds the club won promotion straight back to the top tier of Brazilian football when they beat Figueirense 2-1 to confirm the promotion.
A club like no other.
In memory of the 71 people who died on LaMia flight 2933. R.I.P 💚
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