Cape Town — Following the death of Richards Bay's Siphamandla Mtolo who collapsed at training on Tuesday, local clubs must acquaint themselves with the Fifa Sudden Death Registry.
The reason for the death of Mtolo remains unknown, but it highlighted the need for clubs and their technical staff to be prepared for eventualities. Data from the Fifa registry shows that many deaths followed sudden heart attacks.
The Fifa registry has investigated the underlying causes of the sudden death of football players worldwide, both at the professional and amateur levels. It provides up-to-date information basis for prevention strategies and emergency treatment.
Following Mtolo's death, football’s ability to deal with medical emergencies has been brought into sharper focus. It would appear football around the world has been prepared to deal with on-field issues effectively. However, there are several cases where players died after receiving treatment on the field.
In January 1988, Malaga goalkeeper Jose Gallardo took a knock to the head during a collision with a Celta Vigo player. He lost consciousness, and was rushed to hospital. Two days later he recovered without problems. However, seven days later, he fell into a coma, and a week later, the Spaniard died.
There are several cases of players collapsing and passing away during a game.
African football fans will remember Cameroon's Marc-Vivien Foe, who died in June 2003 while playing an international match against Columbia in France. He collapsed on the pitch. He died after a heart attack, despite attempts to resuscitate him.
The great Cameroonian star Roger Milla was a spectator at the match and afterwards, he shared his thoughts with the media: "When I saw Marc-Vivien Foé fall, I immediately thought that he had simply been injured.
"When the doctors took Foé off on a stretcher, we saw his arm hanging off to the side. I knew it was more serious than we had thought."
Two years later, the world was rocked by the death of Cristian Gómez, the Argentine professional who died after suffering a suspected heart attack during the game after he fainted. The 27-year-old footballer died whilst playing for Atletico Parana against Boca Unidos in May 2015.
There was one bizarre case of an extraordinary and unfortunate death of a footballer in October 2014. Peter Biaksangzuala, a 23-year-old midfielder of Bethlehem Vengthlang in India, died due to suffering serious damage to his dorsal spine while celebrating with a backflip after he scored a goal.
According to Fifa's data, most football-related deaths were recorded in Europe and South America. However, more football is likely played in these regions.
An interesting item in Fifa's registry is that the survival rate of cardiac arrest on the field is more favourable in North America and Australia than anywhere else in the world.
Meanwhile, the PSL, confirmed that a moment of silence would be observed at all upcoming Nedbank Cup and Diski Challenge fixtures this week.
IOL Sport