A selfie shows Grant Wahl with a t-shirt supporting LGBTQ rights, who got detained, and was allegedly forced to remove it by Qatar World Cup security, before entering the stadium in Al Rayyan, Qatar released on November 21, 2022 in this picture obtained from social media. Grant Wahl via Twitter\/via REUTERS<\/p>\n
Well-known U.S. soccer journalist Grant Wahl died on Friday after suffering \u201cacute distress\u201d while covering a match at the World Cup in Qatar, his agent said.<\/p>\n
U.S. Soccer said it was \u201cheartbroken to learn\u201d of Wahl\u2019s death. His wife responded to the U.S. Soccer statement on Twitter, saying she was \u201cin complete shock\u201c.<\/p>\n
Wahl, a former Sports Illustrated sportswriter who moved to the Substack online publishing platform, had been tweeting about the Netherlands-Argentina match earlier on Friday.<\/p>\n
His agent, Tim Scanlan, told Reuters that Wahl had \u201cappeared to suffer some kind of acute distress in the start of extra time\u201d at the quarter-final match.<\/p>\n
Scanlan said attempts were made to revive Wahl in the press box before he was taken by stretcher to a local hospital, where he was confirmed dead.<\/p>\n
FIFA, soccer\u2019s world governing body, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n
Qatar\u2019s international media office and World Cup organizer, the Supreme Committee for Delivery and legacy, did not immediately respond to Reuters request for comment.<\/p>\n
\u201cEveryone\u2019s emotional and it\u2019s really traumatic,\u201d Scanlan said. \u201cHe was a true advocate for both the men\u2019s and women\u2019s games and really just cared deeply about the sport. He was empathetic and just truly a brilliant writer.\u201d<\/p>\n
Wahl said in late November he was briefly detained when he tried to enter a World Cup stadium in Qatar while wearing a rainbow shirt in support of the LGBTQ community in a country where same-sex relations are illegal<\/p>\n
He said World Cup security denied him entry to the United States\u2019 opener against Wales at the Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium in Al Rayyan and asked him to take his shirt off.<\/p>\n
Wahl wrote on Monday that he had visited a hospital while in Qatar.<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t 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,\u201d he posted on Substack.<\/p>\n
U.S. State Department spokesman Ned Price said on Twitter the department had been in close communication with Wahl\u2019s family.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are engaged with senior Qatari officials to see to it that his family\u2019s wishes are fulfilled as expeditiously as possible,\u201d said Price.<\/p>\n
The U.S. soccer community shared in an immediate outpouring of grief over the news.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was a kind and caring person whose passion for soccer and dedication to journalism were immeasurable,\u201d Major League Soccer Commissioner Don Garber said in reaction to news of Wahl\u2019s death.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is so devastating,\u201d twice World Cup winner Megan Rapinoe said on Twitter. \u201cAll the love to his family and loved ones.\u201d4<\/p>\n
Culled from Reuters.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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