Longtime soccer sportswriter and Kansas native Grant Wahl died covering the World Cup in Qatar

Grant Wahl, a Mission native, was influential in the soccer world. He was able to break down the most intricate of plays and relate to hardcore and casual fans alike.
Updated December 9, 2022 at 10:47 PM ET

Longtime soccer sportswriter Grant Wahl died on Friday while covering the Argentina-Netherlands quarterfinal at the 2022 World Cup in Doha, Qatar.

As the match was winding down, NPR correspondent Tom Goldman witnessed a commotion in the press tribune at Lusail Stadium. Reporters scattered as Wahl collapsed. Paramedics responded to the seating area where he was and performed CPR. After many minutes, they took him away on a stretcher while using an automatic chest compressor to continue applying CPR.

Wahl's wife and brother both confirmed his death to NPR. He was 48.