Francisco Brines passes away aged 89

Valencia CF wish to express our deepest condolences to the family and friends of poet Francisco Brines, who has died at the age of 89 in the Hospital Francesc de Borja in Gandia.

A dedicated Valencianista, just days ago he became the first Valencian to receive the Cervantes Prize, the most prestigious award for literature and poetry in Spanish. In his career he was also the recepient of the National Literature Prize, the Reina Sofía Award for Ibero-American poetry, the Federico García Lorca International Poetry award and the National Critics award, amongst other honours.

His enormous artistic and cultural profile was coupled with his passion for Valencia CF. His opinion columns in the El País newspaper often reference the club, for whom his father, José Brines Benavent, was a board member for much of the 1960s.

On the occasion of his winning the Cervantes Prize, Valencia CF, through the VCF Foundation, sent the poet a reproduction of the club's constitutional act, accompanied by a letter of thanks and appreciation from club president Anil Murthy.

The VCF Foundation and the Francisco Brines Foundation have been working for weeks to organise a tribute to the late poet, scheduled for June.