Ballybrack FC, a soccer team in the Irish Leinster Senior League, informed the league in November that one of its players, Fernando La Fuente, had died in a tragic car accident. This resulted in the postponement of a previously scheduled game between Ballybrack FC and Arklow Town.
The only problem is that La Fuente isn’t dead. He had simply moved for work-related reasons in September and hadn’t been playing with the club.
According to a story in The Irish Sun,
Speaking to the Irish Sun, LSL chairman Dave Moran raged: “We are still trying to verify what exactly happened here. I’ve never seen anything like this.
“This doesn’t reflect badly on the league, we were absolutely horrified and acted in good faith trying to help out at a desperate time.
“I also feel sorry for the young lad reading that he’s dead on Facebook.”
. . .
Teams throughout the league shared heartfelt messages of condolence with some holding a minute’s silence before one of their games after hearing of the supposed tragedy.