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Wahl, 49, who temporarily lived in Baltimore in the late 2000s and early 2010s while his wife, Celine Grounder was a fellow and researcher at Johns Hopkins University, died in his seat while covering the World Cup in Qatar, when he suffered an aortic aneurysm, Grounder, said to “CBS."
“It’s just one of those things that had been likely brewing for years,” she said.
Wahl was covering the Argentina quarterfinal win over the Netherlands when he collapsed, falling back in his seat on Friday, Dec. 9, US reporters said. He was rushed to a local hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.
According to organizers of the Craig Willinger Fund in Maryland, which recently honored Wahl's life a special celebration, the renowned soccer writer "loved to be among the fans of the Beautiful Game at Slaínte (Irish Pub and Restaurant) and that is how he got to know Craig and learn about Craig’s dream of making soccer dreams come true for young fans with cancer."
His support was a constant presence throughout our 13 years of service to the soccer community.
At Slainte's, Wahl would write stories, watch mid-week Champions League matches with diehard fans, and launched his first book, "The Beckham Experiment," which was followed by several other well-received novels that skyrocketed his notoriety, according to charity officials.
"As so many have said, he was kind, he cared, he was generous. Our hearts go out to (Grounder), his brother (Eric Wahl), (his family), and his colleagues and friends who cherished him like we did" organizers of the Craig Willinger Fund said. "There will never be another of his kind."
Shortly before his death, Wahl — covering his eighth World Cup tournament — wrote on his website earlier in the week that his "body finally broke down" on him, and that he was on antibiotics for bronchitis.
He also was detained late last month for wearing an LGBTQIA+ rights shirt to the US World Cup opener against Wales, as gay and lesbian sex is criminalized in Qatar. He was detained for 25 minutes before being let go by a top security official, he wrote at the time.
Wahl covered the Princeton Tigers soccer team while at Princeton, and went on to work for Sports Illustrated upon graduation in 1996 through 2021, where he made his name writing a cover page story about a then high school-aged LeBron James before redefining the soccer section at the magazine. He spent time at Fox Sports from 2012 to 2019, and launched his own website last year.
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