Wife of Grant Wahl says husband died of aneurysm, no foul play

Flowers and a picture of the journalist Grant Wahl of the United States who collapsed and died in the stadium's press area while covering the match between Argentina and Netherlands are seen in the media tribune during the Quarterfinal between England and France at the 2022 FIFA World Cup Xinhua

Dr. Celine Gounder, wife of Grant Wahl, says husband died of aneurysm with no foul play

By Victor Barbosa | Last updated 12/14/22

Dr. Celine Gounder says that her husband, American soccer journalist Grant Wahl, died of an aneurysm and that no foul play was involved during his death at the World Cup.

BREAKING
The Peter King Podcast:
Dr. @celinegounder says her husband, @GrantWahl , died of a natural event, "a slowly growing undetected ascending aortic aneurysm, which means there’s this ballooning in the upper part of the aorta, as it comes out of the heart."
Link to pod soon.
— Peter King (@peter_king) December 14, 2022

Dr. @celinegounder:
“This had been silent, probably for years. It ruptured, and he would have bled out quite rapidly. Some of the blood went into the sac surrounding the heart, which would have put pressure on his heart. His heart would not have been able to beat against it.”
— Peter King (@peter_king) December 14, 2022

I asked Dr. @celinegounder if there was any chance of foul play.
“No, no, no. This was a condition that had probably been brewing for years … I don’t think there was any kind of foul play at all here.”https://t.co/CHrisYhrDQ
— Peter King (@peter_king) December 14, 2022

Wahl died Friday while covering the World Cup in Qatar. He was a well-known defender of human rights and had been outspoken against Qatar leading up to and during the tournament.

In November, security temporarily detained Wahl for wearing a pro-LGBTQ+ T-shirt featuring a soccer ball surrounded by rainbow colors. Additionally, Wahl published a story last Thursday to his Substack, discussing World Cup organizers' apathy over the deaths of migrant workers.

In an emotional video posted to his Instagram account, Wahl's brother, Eric, said he was suspicious of the death.

"I'm gay. I'm the reason he wore the rainbow shirt to the World Cup," Eric Wahl said. "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."

On Tuesday, Eric Wahl wrote on Twitter that he no longer suspected foul play in his brother's death.

The family will release a statement as to cause of death soon. I no longer suspect foul play. It was not PE. https://t.co/OKRV6XEvgL
— Eric Wahl (@ziplamak) December 13, 2022

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