Famed Sports Writer, Grant Wahl, Dies Suddenly During World Cup Match; Brother Suspects Foul Play
Edited by: Fern Sidman
Grant Wahl, the CBS Sports reporter and prominent American soccer journalist who helped increase the popularity of game in the United States, died suddenly on Friday while covering a FIFA World Cup match in Qatar between Argentina and the Netherlands. He was 49.
The AP reported that Wahl fell back in his seat in a section of Lusail Stadium reserved for journalists during extra time of the game, and reporters adjacent to him called for assistance.
Emergency services workers responded very quickly, treated him for 20 or 30 minutes on site and then took him out on a stretcher, said Keir Radnedge, a veteran British sports journalist who was working nearby at the time, according to the AP report.
The World Cup organizing committee said he was taken to Doha’s Hamad General Hospital, but it did not state a cause of death, according to the AP report. “We are in touch with the US Embassy and relevant local authorities to ensure the process of repatriating the body is in accordance with the family’s wishes,” it said in a statement.
On Saturday, People.com reported that Josh Glancy, a special correspondent for The Sunday Times of the UK shared a recounting of the events that led Wahl’s death. Wahl himself said earlier in the week that he had come down with “a case of bronchitis.”
“Why wasn’t there a defibrillator? That was the question we kept asking each other, as the medics pumped and pumped to no avail,” Glancy wrote, noting that Wahl had been receiving CPR for several minutes after an unexpected medical issue, as was reported by People.com. “At this billion-dollar state-of-the-art stadium, which has a VIP suite so lavish it includes a bedroom, which will host the World Cup final, why was there no defibrillator to hand? Many minutes passed, and we kept expecting it to come. But it never did.”
Eric Wahl, the brother of Grant has stated that he believes that his brother “was killed” and the circumstances surrounding his death smacks of foul play from the Qatari government as suspicion grows.
“My name is Eric Wahl. I live in Seattle, Washington, I am Grant Wahl’s brother,” he said announcing his brother’s death on Instagram Friday.
“I am gay, I am the reason he wore the rainbow shirt to the World Cup. 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 just beg for any help.”
People.com also reported that Wahl’s wife, Dr. Cèline Gounder, said she’s in “complete shock.”
She tweeted as news of Wahl’s death spread, “I am so thankful for the support of my husband @GrantWahl’s soccer family & of so many friends who’ve reached out tonight. I’m in complete shock.”
On Saturday, FIFA President Gianni Infantino expressed his “sincerest condolences to the family and friends” of Wahl, according to the People.com report.
“It is with disbelief and immense sadness that I have been made aware of the passing of renowned sports journalist Grant Wahl, whilst reporting on a quarter-final match during the FIFA World Cup in Qatar,” Infantino said in a statement. “Only some days ago, Grant was recognized by FIFA and AIPS for his contribution to reporting on eight consecutive FIFA World Cups, and his career also included attendance at several FIFA Women’s World Cups, as well as a host of other international sporting events. His love for football was immense and his reporting will be missed by all who follow the global game.”
A day before his death, Wahl discussed coming down with bronchitis on a Thursday episode of his Fútbol with Grant Wahl podcast, as ESPN reports. While Wahl said at the time he was doing “slightly better,” he claimed he was not at “100 percent” as he prepared to attend the Friday match, People.com reported. “My body told me, even after the U.S. went out, ‘Dude, you are not sleeping enough,’ and it rebelled on me. So I’ve had a case of bronchitis this week,” he said. “I’ve been to the medical clinic at the media center twice now, including today. I’m feeling better today, I basically canceled everything on this Thursday, that I had, and napped,” Wahl added, as was reported by People.com.
Wahl explained on his Substack that his body “finally broke down on me,” and again detailed the sickness, People.com reported. He described himself as having “three weeks of little sleep, high stress and lots of work.”
“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,” he wrote, as was reported by People.com. “I didn’t have Covid (I test regularly here), but I went into the medical clinic at the main media center today, and they said I probably have bronchitis. They gave me a course of antibiotics and some heavy-duty cough syrup, and I’m already feeling a bit better just a few hours later. But still: No bueno.”
Wahl’s reporting had been critical of FIFA and Qatar during the World Cup in Doha. In an interview with NPR, Eric Wahl said his brother didn’t shy away from highlighting the controversy at the sporting event. Eric Wahl said of his brother, “He was very critical of FIFA, which is not new for him and very critical of how the Qataris were running the games.”
Qatar has a reprehensible record of human rights violations and as such, controversies erupted as to its selection as the World Cup host. The majority of those working in Qatar are migrant workers who have been treated in an abysmal fashion by the government and the society as a whole.
The New York Post reported that on Wednesday, a migrant worker died at the tournament while performing repairs at a training base during the group stage, according to a report in The Athletic. The worker suffered a fatal blow to the head after falling off a forklift, and it was kept under wraps until the report came out, the Post added.
A day before his untimely death, Grant Wahl expressed his views on this on his Substack account. The Post reported that on Thursday, he wrote, “Qatari World Cup organizers don’t even hide their apathy over migrant worker deaths, including the most recent one. They just don’t care.”
He added that “We know the Qatari Supreme Committee doesn’t care because its CEO, Nasser Al-Khater, told you all you needed to hear in an interview with the BBC that was breathtaking in its crassness.”
Wahl was referring to the statement that Al-Khater gave the media in the aftermath of the most recent death of a migrant worker. The Post reported that Al-Khater responded to a reporter who posed a question to him about death. “We’re in the middle of a World Cup, and we have a successful World Cup. And this is something that you want to talk about right now? I mean, death is a natural part of life, whether it’s at work, whether it’s in your sleep. Of course, a worker died. Our condolences go to his family. However, it’s strange that this is something that you wanted to focus on as your first question.”
The Post also reported that between 400 and 500 migrant workers are estimated to have died during constructions of stadiums and facilities needed for the World Cup. Amnesty International also documented abhorrent living conditions workers endured.
Later on Friday evening, the US government announced they were in contact with the Qatari regime.
“We were deeply saddened to learn of the death of Grant Wahl and send our condolences to his family, with whom we have been in close communication,” U.S. Department of State spokesperson Edward Price tweeted, as was reported by the Post. “We are engaged with senior Qatari officials to see to it that his family’s wishes are fulfilled as expeditiously as possible.”
