The death of influential American soccer journalist Grant Wahl is a subject both fans and media members are still talking about. Thursday morning on The Dan Patrick Show, NBC Sports’s Peter King shared a story about going to South Africa to cover the World Cup in 2010 and Wahl taking care to introduce the football scribe to influential coaches and journalists from the soccer world.
“Some people might say, ‘well geez, Grant’s giving you time with people who he cultivated and who he wanted to be able to work with,’” King told Patrick. “I always thought the reason he did that is not only for total unselfishness and class, but because he wanted to see the game grow in the United States. That’s why he’s introducing me to everybody. He wants me to write about it to a non-soccer crowd.”
Dan Patrick agreed that Grant Wahl was a major influence on the lives of sports fans across the country, particularly as the popularity of soccer and the US Men’s and Women’s National Teams grew. He added that there is a section of fans that don’t care for soccer that still own Wahl a debt of gratitude for being the first journalist to write a profile of LeBron James for a national publication when James was still a high schooler in Akron.
“I hope there’s some posthumous honor for him that his wife can share in, that his widow can share in, that’s soccer related.”
Earlier this week, Wahl’s wife Céline Gounder revealed that none of the conspiracy theories surrounding her husband’s death held water. Grant Wahl “died from the rupture of a slowly growing, undetected ascending aortic aneurysm with hemopericardium.” She added that CPR or defribilator paddles could not have saved him.
King added that it was hard not to take note of the emotional reactions of past and present members of the US Men’s and Women’s National Teams when they talked about Wahl over the weekend. He does not think it is something US Soccer will ignore.
“I’m sure that US Soccer’s gonna do something. I’m sure they’re gonna do something. I hope a lot of people do something, because his is a memory that we should cherish.”
