A Chinese teenage football player died after suffering a catastrophic head injury while training in Spain, his club announced Thursday.
Guo Jiaxuan went into a coma last month after an accident during a training match between the Beijing men’s U-20 team and Spanish club RC Alcobendas in Madrid.
A local hospital pronounced him “brain dead” before transferring him to China, where he was treated at Beijing Tiantan Hospital.
Guo, who played for top-tier Beijing Guoan’s U-19 team, died on Wednesday evening, according to a club social media post.
“We’ve lost a child who loves football. May Jiaxuan rest in peace!” the club said.
“The club will continue to do its utmost to properly handle the aftermath and provide all necessary help and support to Guo Jiaxuan’s family,” it added.
Guo, who was chosen for China’s U-17 team in 2023 and previously participated in Germany’s largest club’s FC Bayern World Squad project, died a day before his nineteenth birthday.
Guo’s brother shared a black-and-white snapshot of the young defender with the caption, “He’ll forever be frozen on the last day of his 18th year,” on social media.
Last month, he stated that Guo’s condition had “no improvement” and that the family was “gradually accepting reality.”
The exact circumstances behind Guo’s injuries are unknown, and his family has accused the Beijing Football Association of suppressing information about the incident and failing to communicate with them.
They have requested video footage of the match, information on Guo’s medical treatment before he arrived at the hospital, and information about his insurance coverage.
Guo’s brother said on social media on Tuesday that the family “just wants the truth and justice”.
In a web statement made on Thursday, the Beijing FA said it had refrained from “continuously disclosing information” since the incident to “avoid irrelevant personnel interfering with medical work and taking into account the feelings of family members”.
It also stated that they had gotten video footage of the football match and had arranged for experts to evaluate it.
“We have made every effort to coordinate medical resources for treatment and meet the needs of his family as much as possible,” the Beijing FA said.
