Cardiff City and Leeds United came together to remember former captain Sol Bamba in the Welsh capital on Saturday afternoon.
His wife Chloe, their children, and his mother Sehrata carried flowers on to the pitch ahead of kick-off while Neil Warnock, who won promotion to the Premier League with Bamba at Cardiff in 2019, was also present for Leeds’ 2-0 win.
The former Premier League star, who also played for Leicester and Middlesbrough in England, died aged 39 on August 31 after falling ill before a match in Turkey.
Cardiff’s stars came out ahead of kick-off in blue training shirts with a photo of Bamba on the front and the stadium paid tribute to him with a minute of silence.
Scarves, bouquets, and a plaque bearing his name and photo were also laid outside the stadium to remember the father of three.
Cardiff and Leeds fans paid tribute to Sol Bamba as his family members laid flowers on the pitch to remember the former captain
Players from Cardiff City warmed up in special kits bearing his photo on Saturday afternoon
Bambadied aged 39 last month before a match in Turkey, where he was the technical director at Adanaspor
The match programmes were dedicated to Bamba and sold from the stalls with a special blue and white cover.
In the 14th minute of the match fans rose to dedicate a minute of applause to Bamba, who had worn the number 14 shirt for the Bluebirds. Supporters also held aloft a large banner in his name.
Bamba was the technical director at Turkish club Adanaspor but fell ill before a game last month.
He was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma in 2020 and was believed to be free of the rare form of cancer, but Turkish outlet Hurriyet reported that he had suffered a relapse.
Bamba grew up in Paris and that is where his love for the game sprung, starting his career with Paris Saint-Germain’s youth setup before taking the leap and deciding to move to Scotland where he played for both Dunfermline and then Hibernian.
In 2011 his affair with English football began when he joined Leicester City, where he played under Sven-Goran Eriksson.
Bamba paid tribute to his former manager after his death at the age of 76 in August.
He wrote on X: ‘Deeply devastated by the news of Sven’s passing today. He was not just an exquisite person, but he was also the best coach I’ve ever had, inspiring my journey as a player but also as a manager.
Flowers, scarves, and a plaque were laid outside the Cardiff City stadium in tribute to Bamba
Supporters unveiled a huge banner and there was a standing ovation after 14 minutes
Bamba’s wife Chloe (left) and mother Sehrata (right) paid tribute to their loved one in Wales
Neil Warnock attended the match, which Cardiff lost 2-0 against high-flying Leeds
‘My sincere condolences to his family and loved ones. Rest in peace, Sven.’
The pair shared a good relationship having previously worked together in the Ivory Coast national team setup where the Swede manager also coached Bamba.
He then headed away from England, playing for Trabzonspor and Palermo before returning in 2015 to play for Leeds.
His captaincy stint with Leeds was pulled short when he moved to Cardiff City in 2016, where he made 118 appearances.
It was during his time in Wales that Bamba was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin lymphoma, a rare form of cancer.
The centre-back spent four mounts months battling the aggressive cancer by undergoing chemotherapy.
‘After the first chemo I was down for four days,’ he told Mail Sport back in 2022.
‘I could not get out of bed. I lost weight. After that, I told my missus, “I’m not going for the second round”. The way I was, in that moment, it was awful.’
Warnock brought Bamba to Cardiff in 2018 and the pair won promotion to the Premier League
Bamba made a triumphant return in the final match of the 2020-21 season and went on to sign for Middlesbrough ahead of the 2021-22 season.
He went on to make 28 appearances and even scored the winning penalty in the FA Cup fourth round clash against Manchester United at Old Trafford.
Speaking about the experience he said: ‘When I was going through chemo, I never thought for one minute I would come back and play. And I never thought about scoring penalties at Old Trafford – nights like that seemed a million miles away.’