Russian football fan dies in stands after suspected cardiac arrest

The Russian Premier League is investigating after a fan tragically died in the stands at the match between Krylia Sovetov and Rubin Kazan in the city of Samara on Saturday.

The supporter reportedly fell ill towards the end of the match and continued to receive treatment after the whistle but was unable to be revived.

“A 50-year-old spectator felt unwell at the end of the match,” read a statement from the RPL.

“Doctors arrived in time and carried out resuscitation for half an hour but could not save the victim’s life.”

The statement expressed condolences to the late fan’s loved ones and stated that preliminarily information was that the fan had suffered a sudden cardiac arrest.

Krylia Sovetov also issued a message of condolence, while the RPL said it would undertake an investigation with the club into the tragedy. 

Saturday's match against Rubin was played in sub-zero temperatures at the Samara Arena and ended in a 2-0 victory for the hosts.

According to reports in the Russian media, doctors began their resuscitation efforts 10 minutes towards the end of the game and continued until around 30 minutes after the final whistle.

An ambulance was at the stadium but the fan was not moved from the stands for treatment, Sport24 reported.

Footage online showed part of the efforts from medical staff.

In a tragic coincidence, a steward died at the same stadium following a match between the same teams in 2019.

On that occasion, the worker was also said to have suffered a cardiac arrest.

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Saturday’s tragedy in Russia follows a spate of medical emergencies in the crowd in matches in the English Premier League.

The match between Newcastle and Tottenham was halted back in October after a supporter suffered a cardiac arrest.

Earlier in December, there were two incidents on the same night as fans required treatment at games featuring Watford and Chelsea and Southampton and Leicester.

On all three occasions the fans recovered.