A GoFundMe campaign set up to restart the search for missing Cardiff City footballer Emiliano Sala and pilot Dave Ibbotson has reached and passed its €300,000 goal.
The crowdfunding campaign was started by Sport Cover, the agency founded by Sala’s agent Meissa N’Diaye, and as of 12:15pm on Sunday, over €322,000 (£278,000) had been raised.
The target was originally set at €150,000 but was increased following a number of sizeable donations.
Paris Saint-Germain forward Kylian Mbappe has donated the highest amount, pledging €30,010 to the campaign, while fellow footballers Adrien Rabiot, Dimitri Payet and Alassane Plea are also amongst those giving the highest donations.
The title of the campaign: #NoDejenDeBuscar Emiliano Sala, translates to: “Don’t Stop Looking for Emiliano Sala,” and was set up in the wake of the search for Sala and pilot Dave Ibbotson ending on Thursday.
A light aircraft carrying the pair went missing over the Channel Islands on Monday evening, but a three-day search found “no trace” of the Piper Malibu.
Sala was flying back to Cardiff from Nantes having said goodbye to his former teammates after completing a transfer to Premier League side Cardiff for a club-record fee.
The campaign hopes to restart the search using money donated.
“This fund was created in response to the urgency of the situation and the authorities’ decision not to pursue the search,” a message on GoFundMe read.
“Its sole objective, through a specialized (sic) non-profit organization (sic), is to help the family of Emiliano and pilot Dave Ibbotson continue the search.”
Cardiff hoped for an extension to the January transfer window given Sala’s disappearance, but Ken Choo, the club’s chief executive, told talkSPORT earlier this week that the Premier League insist they must stick to the existing deadline of 11pm on January 31.