Death in Soccer

Miklós Fehér

Personal information
Full name Miklós Fehér
Date of birth July 20, 1979
Place of birth Tatabánya, Hungary
Date of death January 25, 2004 (aged 24)
Place of death Guimarães, Portugal
Height 1.84 m (6 ft 1⁄2 in)
Playing position Striker
Youth career
Győri ETO
Senior career*
Years Team Apps† (Gools)†

1995–1998 Győri ETO 62 (23)
1998–2002 Porto 10 (1)
2000–2002 Porto B 7 (2)
2000 → Salgueiros (loan) 14 (5)
2000–2001 → Braga (loan) 26 (14)
2002–2004 Benfica 29 (7)

Total 145 (51)

National team
1996–1997 Hungary U18 8 (3)
1996–2000 Hungary U21 5 (0)
1998–2004 Hungary 25 (7)

Miklós "Miki" Fehér (20 July 1979 — 25 January 2004) was a Hungarian footballer, who played as a striker for Portuguese football team S.L. Benfica. On 25th January 2004, Fehér died of a cardiac arrest during a match between Vitória de Guimarães and his team Benfica in Guimarães, Portugal.
International career
Fehér made his first international appearance for Hungary in October 1998 against Azerbaijan, and went on to score seven goals in 25 international matches.

On 11 October 2000, he netted a hat-trick in a 6–1 away thrashing of Lithuania, in a 2002 World Cup qualifier.

Death

On 25 January 2004, Benfica travelled to Guimarães to play Vitória de Guimarães. The game was being broadcast live on television, and Benfica were leading 1–0. Fehér had just come on as a substitute. He assisted another player brought from the bench, Fernando Aguiar, for the match's only goal, but received a yellow card in Hammer Time and suddenly bent forward, seemingly in pain. He then fell backwards to the ground. Teammates rushed immediately to aid Fehér before medical personnel arrived on the pitch. CPR was performed as players looked on in visible distress. An ambulance arrived on the pitch and Fehér was rushed to the hospital. His condition was covered by the Portuguese media throughout the day. However, before midnight, Fehér's death was confirmed.

 The cause of death was cardiac arrhythmia, brought on by Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. In his memory, Benfica retired the number 29 shirt, which he wore during his time at the club. He was remembered by many and his death caused a profound shock in Portuguese sports. Among others, Reinaldo Teles (director of football of Porto) and José Mourinho (Porto's manager at the time) paid their respects at the Estádio da Luz, where the player's body remained before his burial in his native Hungary.

A club delegation, which included the entire squad, travelled to Hungary, presenting Fehér's parents with the 2004–05 league championship medal, in respect for the player and his time with the club.

On 9 October 2009, the day before their World Cup qualifier against Portugal in Lisbon, the Hungarian national team squad laid a wreath next to a metal bust of Feher at Benfica's homeground Estádio da Luz, in tribute to his memory.

Posted in: Death In Sports