A stray ginger cat who won hearts in soccer-mad China by correctly predicting the winners of seven out of 10 World Cup matches died from a complication of heart disease on Monday, prompting thousands of fans to leave condolence messages online.
The “imperial” street cat was often found near the west gate of the Forbidden City in central Beijing, where he was fed by staff at the palace complex.
They named him Baidian’er – which means “white spot” in Chinese, referring to the patch of white fur under his nose – and when the World Cup kicked off last month they decided to appoint him as the tournament oracle. .
He made his “predictions” by choosing between two bowls of cat food bearing the national flags of competing teams.
Baidian’er drew a huge following on social media after he got it right six times in a row – including Croatia beating Argentina, and Argentina’s late win over Nigeria – and photos of the “psychic cat” got thousands of likes.
But his winning streak was cut short on Monday when the cat, believed to be around seven or eight, died at a local veterinary clinic from blood clots resulting from a congenital heart defect.
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