Jesús de Miguel had only been a father for 16 months when tragedy struck during a football match.
The 30-year-old Club Deportivo Tenerife striker, who had recently begun one of the most important chapters of his life with the birth of his first daughter Carla, died after suffering cardiac arrest following an unfortunate on-field collision with FC Andorra goalkeeper Jesús Owono during a Spanish second-division match.
Carla was born in June 2025, when De Miguel was still playing for Castellón. Those who shared a dressing room with De Miguel remembered how closely fatherhood became tied to his football. After scoring, he would dedicate his goals to Carla, raising his arms toward the stands and looking for his partner María holding their daughter.
That young family was inside the Heliodoro Rodríguez López stadium when the fatal incident unfolded.
Deep into stoppage time, Owono rushed outside his penalty area to challenge for a long ball and struck De Miguel in the chest with his knee. De Miguel collapsed and suffered cardiac arrest. Medical personnel revived him at the stadium before he was rushed to hospital.
His neurological condition later deteriorated, and Tenerife announced his death the following morning. He was 30.
Tenerife majority shareholder Rayco García later described the scene as devastating for the club.
“The important thing now is for the players to say goodbye to their teammate and come to terms with what has happened. It’s a tragic situation,” García said.
De Miguel’s death shook Spanish football. Matches were postponed, Tenerife suspended club activities, and tributes poured in from teams and players across the country.
Owono later spoke publicly for the first time:
“I feel an immense amount of pain over the loss of Jesús. My thoughts are with him, his family, and everyone who loved him.”
Spanish police opened proceedings into possible involuntary manslaughter because the death resulted from non-natural causes. Santa Cruz de Tenerife chief prosecutor José Luis Sánchez-Jáuregui said criminal proceedings appeared unlikely because the collision occurred during active play.
