CD Tenerife striker Jesús de Miguel died on Tuesday at the age of 30, a day after suffering a cardiac arrest following a collision with FC Andorra goalkeeper Jesús Owono during a Spanish second-division match, the club confirmed.
Death of a player from an on-pitch collision is rare in professional football, and the news has drawn tributes from clubs across Spain while leaving Tenerife’s squad, supporters and the wider game in mourning.
Tenerife announced the death in a statement on Tuesday morning, saying the club communicated the tragic passing of Jesús de Miguel Alameda at 8:00 a.m. that day.
“Racked with pain, with a lump in our throats and unable to believe that this is true, from CD Tenerife we communicate the tragic passing, this Tuesday, November 3, 2026, at 8:00 a.m., of Jesús de Miguel Alameda,” the club said.
The club added that there were no words of comfort for a feeling overflowing with sadness, and said it stood alongside his devastated family, his loved ones and all of Tenerife’s supporters.
Collision happened in the closing stages of Monday’s Segunda División match at the Estadio Heliodoro Rodríguez López, with the score tied at 2-2 and seven minutes into stoppage time.
Owono rushed out of his area to clear a long ball and struck De Miguel in the chest with his knee, according to Reuters, leaving the striker motionless on the pitch as medical staff rushed to treat him.
Medical staff treated De Miguel on the pitch for more than five minutes before he was taken to hospital by ambulance, Reuters reported, and the referee showed Owono a straight red card before abandoning the match.
De Miguel suffered a cardiac arrest in the ambulance on the way to hospital, according to Spanish media cited by SPORTbible, but paramedics resuscitated him during the journey.
Tenerife said on Monday afternoon that De Miguel had been admitted to the University Hospital of Nuestra Señora de Candelaria and was stable despite the severity of his condition.
Hours later, the club said his medical condition had worsened neurologically, and no further update followed before Tuesday morning’s announcement of his death.
Tributes followed quickly from across Spanish football, including from Monday’s opponents Andorra, who said they sent their most sincere condolences to his family, teammates and friends, and to CD Tenerife.
Barcelona said its thoughts and support were with his family, friends and loved ones, while Espanyol said it joined in the grief of his family and of Tenerife during very difficult times.
De Miguel’s family thanked everyone for the expressions of support received and asked, from the heart, for the utmost respect for their privacy in these terrible moments, according to the club statement.
Confirmed so far are the collision, the cardiac arrest in the ambulance, the hospital admission and the time of death announced by the club, while the club has not published a detailed medical account of the final hours.
