Renowned American soccer journalist Grant Wahl has died while covering the World Cup in Qatar.
Wahl had been covering the Netherlands-Argentina match at the Lusail Stadium when he apparently collapsed in extra time. Medics gave him CPR on scene, before eventually taking him away.
Reporters were later told he had died. Wahl’s wife, Dr. Céline Gounder, confirmed the news.
Wahl celebrated his 49th birthday earlier this week.
Wahl’s brother, Eric, also confirmed the news in a since-deleted Instagram post, alleging Grant had been sent death threats — and that he believed his brother had been killed.
Grant Wahl was a noted supporter of LGBTQ rights, in part because of support for his brother. He made headlines in November when a security guard refused to let him into a Qatari stadium because he was wearing a T-shirt with a rainbow on it.
More recently, Wahl wrote a scathing piece on Qatari authorities’ apathy toward migrant workers deaths, after Qatari World Cup chief Nasser Al-Khater brushed off a migrant worker dying while doing repairs at the Saudi Arabian club’s training site.
In a post on his website, Wahl said he had visited a medical clinic on Dec. 5 after having a cold and experiencing chest pressure and discomfort. He was told he probably had bronchitis and was given a course of antibiotics and cough syrup.
Wahl will long be credited for helping to raise the profile of soccer in the United States.
He wrote multiple Sports Illustrated cover stories about soccer, and was a correspondent for CBS Sports during this World Cup. He was also a reporter for Fox Sports from 2012 to 2019.
Wahl wrote for GrantWahl.com and hosted the Fútbol with Grant Wahl podcast. He had recently spoken with Front Office Sports about his expectation’s for this year’s World Cup.
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