Ronaldo's Club Donating Money From Ticket Sales To Family of Player Who Died
Ronaldo's Club Almería Donating $ From Ticket Sales ... To Family Of Player Who Died On Pitch
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Cristiano Ronaldo's Spanish club is stepping up for Jesús de Miguel's loved ones ... UD Almería says it's giving every cent of ticket money from an upcoming game to the late Tenerife striker's family.
And the game they picked couldn't be more fitting.
Almería, in which CR7 bought a 25% stake back in February, will hand over all ticket proceeds from its home game against CD Tenerife in April.
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The club announced the move on Wednesday ... with the backing of Almería's owners.
In its statement, Almería conceded that no amount of money or support can make up for such a tragedy ... but said they still wanted to do something.
It's a BIG gesture for a second-division club. Teams in Spain's second tier don't get the huge TV deals La Liga clubs do, so ticket sales are a major revenue stream.
De Miguel, 30, died Tuesday after suffering cardiac arrest following a collision with Andorra goalkeeper Jesús Owono in Monday's match. Spanish police opened an investigation, a requirement under Spanish law for any non-natural death, including accidents.
As for Owono, he recently broke his silence, saying he's living through "the most difficult days" of his life.
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In a statement released through FC Andorra on Wednesday, the 25-year-old keeper said he can barely find the words and is struggling to come to terms with what happened.
Owono added he knows there will be "many issues to address" -- and he'll face whatever comes with respect -- but right now he can't think about anything but Jesús.
Making the situation even more difficult, the keeper says he's been flooded with racist insults online. He also skipped Andorra's voluntary practice on Wednesday, where his teammates held a minute of silence.
As for Tenerife, majority shareholder Rayco García says the entire squad will fly to the mainland for De Miguel's funeral Thursday in Navahermosa, Toldeo. García also revealed De Miguel's wife and their 16-month-old baby were at the stadium on Monday.
The club has started six days of official mourning and will open its stadium Saturday so fans can say goodbye.
Tenefire's and Andorra's games this weekend have been postponed.
