Pape Diouf: COVID-19 hits a soccer icon

The former Marseille president Pape Diouf is reported to have died on Tuesday after suffering from COVID-19, according to The Guardian.

The 68-year-old had been suffering from coronavirus.

Diouf became the first black president of a first-tier European club when he took the position at Marseille in 2005. Previously he had been a journalist and football agent, with Marcel Desailly, Basile Boli, William Gallas, Samir Nasri and Didier Drogba among his clients.

According to reports, Diouf was being treated in a hospital in Senegal, the country of his birth, after contracting the virus.

A statement on Marseille’s Twitter account read: “Olympique de Marseille learned with great sadness of the death of Pape Diouf. Pape will remain forever in the hearts of Marseillais as one of the great craftsmen of the history of the club. Our condolences to his family and loved ones.”

COVID-19 status worldwide shows an uptick in confirmed cases and fatalities.

Confirmed	Cases per 1M people	Recovered	Deaths
857,487	121.69	178,034	42,107

Global Map
As of 12:00 p.m. ET March 31, 2020 Credit: CDC

Global case numbers are reported by the World Health Organization (WHO) in their coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) situation reportexternal icon