(Photo/Osports)

Nov. 30 marked a sad day for soccer fans in South America and China also, as a packed stadium was denied the chance to applaud Brazilian club Chapecoense on the first leg of the Copa Sudamericana 2016 final. Only days earlier, on Nov. 28 (local time), 19 Chapecoense players were killed in a plane crash.

The game was scheduled to start at 7:45 a.m. on Dec. 1 (China time). On many live-streaming soccer game apps, the match between Chapecoense and Atletico Nacional remained high on the home page, even though no game would occur.

On Dongqiudi.com, one of China’s leading online soccer forums, the comments section of the game was flooded with mournful comments left by Chinese soccer fans; many sent emojis of candles as prayers for the deceased players. Some also wrote that Chapecoense is a champion, even though the club was not as well-known as their European counterparts like Real Madrid and Manchester United.

(Snapshot of soccer fans' comments on Dongqiudi.com)

At Atanasio Girardot stadium in Medellin, Colombia – the home field of Atletico Nacional, where the final game would have been held - some 45,000 attendees wore white T-shirts to pay their respects, according to Telegraph News. Back at the Brazilian team’s home field, Arena Conda in Chapeco, more than 22,000 Chapecoense fans gathered to watch video tributes from all over the world, Time reported.

The 19 Chapecoense players were flying with their team on an airplane that crashed in Colombia, killing 76 people out of the 81 on board. 

(Photo/Osports)