Updated

The Brazilian soccer club that was devastated by an airplane crash in the mountains of Colombia last year has met with Pope Francis at the Vatican.

Francis gave Chapecoense a special welcome in his remarks and posed for pictures with the team at the end of his weekly general audience on Wednesday.

When the team's flight went down in Colombia in November, all but six of the 77 players, officials and journalists on board were killed.

Three players survived the crash and two of them, Jackson Follmann and Alan Ruschel, were among those at the Vatican.

Follmann had part of his right leg amputated from injuries in the crash.

Chapecoense faces Roma in a charity match at the Stadio Olimpico on Sunday to raise funds for the team.