Who was a sports journalist who died covering the Qatar World Cup?

Grant Wahl, the sportswriter who suddenly collapsed and died on World Cup Friday, was one of the most well-known football writers in the US with a large following on his Substack blog.

Wahl, who is from Kansas, attended Princeton University and after graduating made a name for himself as a respected Sports Illustrated reporter – with a focus on football.

He was fired in April 2020 after 25 years at the Sports Illustrated publication for taking to social media to complain about coronavirus-related pay cuts. The next month, Wahl launched its Substack.

Wahl’s final post on his Fútbol with Grant Wahl substack was a free-to-read article available to non-paying subscribers and was published just hours before his death was announced. The accredited author shared his thoughts on the ‘unstoppable’ and ‘legendary’ Croatian team.

grant_wahl/Instagram

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Wahl had also written two books: The Beckham Experiment (2009) and Masters of Modern Soccer (2018).

“Grant has made football his life’s work and we are devastated that he and his brilliant lyrics will no longer be with us.” US soccer said in an opinion.

It is not clear what caused Wahl’s death.

He had collapsed in the media stands at the Lusail Iconic Stadium in front of horrified US media colleagues during extra time of Argentina’s quarter-final win over the Netherlands.

The other reporters called for help, and Wahl was taken to a hospital but later pronounced dead.

Wahl’s brother Eric believes foul play is involved. Wahl was arrested by stadium officials in Qatar last week for wearing a shirt with a rainbow on it, and Eric claims his brother received death threats.

Wahl is survived by his wife, Celine Grounder, who said she was “completely shocked” by her husband’s death.