Grant Wahl's Brother Believes Sports Journalist's Shocking Death Wasn't An Accident: 'I Believe He Was Killed'
Dec. 10 2022, Published 2:30 p.m. ET
Renowned sports journalist Grant Wahl died suddenly while attending the 2022 World Cup in Qatar on Friday, December 9, leaving the world perplexed at what caused the seemingly "healthy" writer's sudden passing.
Although no evidence of foul play has been officially released to the public, Grant's brother believes his death was a homicide.
Eric Wahl, who is a gay man, claimed his brother may have been murdered after he was briefly detained in Qatar while wearing a rainbow flag pride shirt.
"I am the reason he wore the rainbow shirt to the world cup," he said in an emotional statement that has since been deleted from Instagram. "I do not believe my brother just died, I believe he was killed."
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Another journalist who had been sitting next to Grant, Rafael Cores, didn't comment on the potential nature of his passing, but he did reveal the Sports Illustrated writer was in good spirits only minutes before his collapse.
"He was working on his story on his laptop, it was about 4 minutes before the end of the extra time," Cores explained. "He was laughing at a joke we saw on Twitter only minutes earlier. I can't believe it. My deepest condolences to Grant Wahl's family."
The U.S. Soccer Federation released a statement mourning Grant's tragic death shortly after the somber news hit headlines.
"The entire U.S. soccer family is heartbroken to learn that we have lost Grant Wahl. Fans of soccer and journalists of the highest quality knew we could always count on Grant to deliver insightful and entertaining stories about our game, and its major protagonists: teams, players, coaches and the many personalities that make soccer unlike any other sport," the statement read. "We thank Grant for his tremendous dedication to and impact on our game in the United States. His writing and the stories he told will live on."
Only one day before attending the World Cup game in Qatar, Grant mentioned feeling unwell and suffering chest pains in an episode of his podcast, Futbol with Grant Wahl, taped on Thursday, December 8.
"My body finally broke down on me. Three weeks of little sleep, high stress and lots of work can do that to you," he shared at the time. "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."
Grant noted that after testing negative for COVID-19, he sought medical attention at a clinic, where he was told he likely was suffering bronchitis. He was immediately prescribed antibiotics and cough syrup to counteract the symptoms.
It is unclear if this illness was related to his passing.