The following is an incomplete list of association footballers who died during their playing careers.

Association football players who died on the pitch or from pitch related incidents

Following an increase in deaths, both during matches and training, in 2007 the

International Federation of Association Football FIFA (; stands for ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' ( French), meaning International Association Football Federation ) is the international governing body of association football, beach football and futsal. It was founde ...

(FIFA) considered mandatory cardiac testing, already in place for years in some countries, such as Italy. By 2009, FIFA pre-competition medical assessment included family history, heart rhythm, sounds, and electrocardiogram (ECG) results. The

Union of European Football Associations Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; french: Union des associations européennes de football; german: Union der europäischen Fußballverbände) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs f ...

(UEFA) required extensive medical tests, including ECG and

echocardiogram An echocardiography, echocardiogram, cardiac echo or simply an echo, is an ultrasound of the heart. It is a type of medical imaging of the heart, using standard ultrasound or Doppler ultrasound. Echocardiography has become routinely used in th ...

for players in the Europa League 2011–12. Constant monitoring has been advised.

FIFA Sudden Death Report

To further understand the scale of the problem, a study, named the ''FIFA Sudden Death Report'' (FIFA-SDR), was commissioned by FIFA and carried out by

Saarland University Saarland University (german: Universität des Saarlandes, ) is a public research university located in Saarbrücken, the capital of the German state of Saarland. It was founded in 1948 in Homburg in co-operation with France and is organized in si ...

. It was published in 2020. The report recorded worldwide deaths attributed to sudden cardiac arrest or other unexplained sudden death while playing (or shortly after playing) football during the period from 2014 to 2018. There were 617 cases during the five-year period. In the majority of cases where an

autopsy An autopsy (post-mortem examination, obduction, necropsy, or autopsia cadaverum) is a surgical procedure that consists of a thorough examination of a corpse by dissection to determine the cause, mode, and manner of death or to evaluate any di ...

was carried out, the cause of death was

coronary heart disease Coronary artery disease (CAD), also called coronary heart disease (CHD), ischemic heart disease (IHD), myocardial ischemia, or simply heart disease, involves the reduction of blood flow to the heart muscle due to build-up of atherosclerotic pla ...

List of players who died

This is a selected list of examples that were reported in the media of football players that died because of various reasons, such as injuries, cardiac arrest, natural death and sometimes unknown reasons.

Transportation accidents

Plane crashes

Road & train accidents

Illnesses and other accidents

References

External links

Football deaths at Spartacus Educational
- Details of several footballers' deaths up to 1936. {{DEFAULTSORT:List of association footballers who died while playing

Association football players who died while playing Association may refer to: *Club (organization), an association of two or more people united by a common interest or goal *Trade association, an organization founded and funded by businesses that operate in a specific industry *Voluntary associatio ...

Died while playing

Association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

Association football player non-biographical articles