What we know about US soccer journalist Grant Wahl’s death

Journalist was outspoken critic of human rights abuses in soccer, sparking fears of foul play

Grant Wahl, a respected journalist known as the voice of soccer for US fans, died suddenly on Friday in Qatar while covering a World Cup fixture between the Netherlands and Argentina. He was 49.

Wahl was known as a sharp critic of human rights abuses in football and made headlines when he was briefly detained before another match in November for wearing a rainbow shirt in support of the LGTBQ+ community, so speculation ran rampant that foul play had been involved in the reporter’s sudden death.

Here’s what we know about Wahl’s death.

Aortic aneurysm revealed as cause of death

Wahl’s wife Dr Celine Gounder said on Wednesday that he died of an aortic aneurysm that ruptured.

“It’s just one of these things that had been likely brewing for years, and for whatever reason, it happened at this point in time,” she said during an appearance on CBS This Morning.

Witnesses say Wahl collapsed in press box

Witnesses say Wahl, who covered 11 men’s and women’s World Cup tournaments, collapsed in the press box at Lusail Stadium.

Medics on-site treated him for about half an hour before he was rushed by ambulance to Hamad General Hospital in Doha, according to the World Cup organizing committee.

Journalist Rafa Cores said Wahl seemed in high spirits not long before his death.

“I’m in shock,” Cores wrote on Twitter. “I was sitting next to him tonight. He was working on his story on his laptop, it was about 4 minutes before the end of the extra time. He was laughing at a joke we saw on Twitter only minutes earlier. I can’t believe it.”

A selfie taken by Wahl (Grant Wahl via REUTERS)

Foul play initially suspected

Initially, Wahl’s brother suggested foul play was involved in the death.

"I am gay. I am the reason he wore the rainbow shirt to the World Cup," Eric Wahl initially wrote on Instagram. "My brother was healthy. He told me he received death threats. I do not believe my brother just died. I believe he was killed, and I’m just begging for any help."

However, on Tuesday, Eric Wahl said on Twitter he no longer suspected foul play or a pulmonary embolism.

‘No indication of foul play or anything nefarious’

The US State Department reiterated this point, with spokesperson Ned Price saying in a statement on Monday there was “no indication of foul play or anything nefarious at this point”.

“We did receive excellent cooperation from our Qatari partners as soon as we learned of Grant Wahl’s passing,” he added. “Our ambassador … was in regular contact with senior officials in the Qatari government in an effort to see to it that we were in a position to fulfill the wishes of the family as expeditiously as possible.”

On Monday, Wahl’s remains were repatriated for an independent autopsy in New York.

A screenshot taken from video provided by FIFA of journalist Grant Wahl at an awards ceremony in Doha, Qatar in Nov. 2022 (FIFA)

Wahl spoke of struggle with bronchitis

In podcast appearances and writings on his website before his death, Wahl described being sick with a nasty case of bronchitis.

“My body finally broke down on me. Three weeks of little sleep, high stress and lots of work can do that to you,” Wahl wrote on his site. “What had been a cold over the last 10 days turned into something more severe on the night of the USA-Netherlands game, and I could feel my upper chest take on a new level of pressure and discomfort.”

Visited World Cup medical clinic several times

The reporter said he went multiple times to the medical clinic at the World Cup media centre and was given cough syrup and ibuprofen, which temporarily relieved his symptoms.

Wahl also said he was testing negative for Covid.

Dr Gounder added on CBS that she has been comforted by the praise for her husband following his passing.

“He was so loved by so many people,” she said, adding that the tributes to the journalist were “like a warm hug when you really need it”.

Wahl had a long career lasting more than 20 years behind him reporting on college basketball and soccer for Sports Illustrated and his own newsletter.

Flowers are placed in memory of Grant Wahl, an American sports journalist who passed away whilst reporting on the Argentina and Netherlands match (Getty Images)

Condition described as ‘balloon-like bulge in the aorta’

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says that an aortic aneurysm “is a balloon-like bulge in the aorta, the large artery that carries blood from the heart through the chest and torso”.

“The force of blood pumping can split the layers of the artery wall, allowing blood to leak in between them,” the CDC site states, adding that “the aneurysm can burst completely, causing bleeding inside the body”.

The conditions led to 9,904 deaths in 2019, with 59 per cent of those deaths occurring among men.

“A history of smoking accounts for about 75 per cent of all abdominal aortic aneurysms,” the CDC says.