Soccer Fans Gather Outside Florence Basilica to Pay Respects to Davide Astori

Thousands of soccer fans gathered in Florence, Italy, on March 8 to pay their respects to the 31-year-old defender Davide Astori, who died of cardiac arrest on March 4, the night before his team, Fiorentina, were due to play Udinese in Serie A.Fans congregated outside the Basilica di Santa Croce during Astori’s funeral. They waved flags and let off off purple smoke, the color of Fiorentina, in memory of the player.Astori was the captain of Fiorentina and his sudden death led to the cancellation of all Serie A and Serie B games in the country scheduled for the following week. Credit: Pierluigi Vanzi via Storyful