April 2 – France, Senegal and the wider football world are mourning the death of former Olympique de Marseille president Pape Diouf after contracting Covid-19.
The first ever black president of a top European football club, Diouf was idolised in his native Senegal but died late Tuesday aged 68, the first person to lose his life in the west African country due to the pandemic.
Tributes have poured in for Diouf whose death raised awareness about the dangers of coronavirus in Senegal. President of Marseille from 2005-09, he had been treated since Saturday in intensive care in Dakar.
Senegal president Macky Sall wrote on his official Twitter account: “I pay tribute to this great figure in sport.”
“Pape will forever remain in the hearts of Marseille people and (is) one of the great architects of the club,” Marseille said in a statement under a photo of Diouf.
A former journalist and players’ agent, Diouf, who moved to France as a teen-ager, led Marseille to the runner-up spot in Ligue 1 twice and reached two French Cup finals. They were crowned league champions the year after his departure.
“Pape Diouf will be remembered as a charismatic, endearing and passionate leader,” added a statement from the French league’s organising body.
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