Top 5 sports tragedies in 2025

Dubai: A year that saw sporting excellence, was also witness to tragedies and untimely deaths. From the deadly stampede at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, India, to the car crash that killed Liverpool striker Diogo Jota, the sporting fraternity had to go through some truly traumatic moments in 2025. Here we list the 5 most tragic incidents of the year.

Chinnaswamy Stadium stampede

Celebrations following the Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s maiden IPL title win turned tragic on June 4 when a crowd crush outside the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, India, resulted in 11 deaths and left 56 people injured. Inadequate event planning and crowd control were cited as factors.

Diogo Jota car crash death

The Portuguese footballer tragically died on July 3, aged 28, in a car crash in Spain. The Liverpool striker was killed in the accident alongside his 25-year-old brother Andre Silva just days after he married Rute Cardoso, the mother of his three children. Jota scored nine goals in all competitions last season as Liverpool cruised to their record-equalling 20th Premier League title.

Ricky Hatton suicide

The popular British boxer took his own life on September 14, aged 46. The pugilist’s funeral attracted the likes of Tyson Fury and Liam Gallagher of Oasis and thousands lined the route in his hometown of Manchester. Hatton was a larger-than-life character who unified the light-welterweight division and also won a world welterweight title. The boxer, who won 45 of his 48 professional bouts, admitted he struggled with drinking and drugs.

‘Palestinian Pele’ killed by gunfire

Suleiman Al Obeid, known as the “Palestinian Pele”, was killed by Israeli gunfire in the Gaza Strip on August 6, aged 41, while waiting to collect humanitarian aid, the Palestinian Football Association (PFA) said. An ex-star of the Khadamat Al Shati club in Gaza, Obeid played 24 times for the Palestine national side. Liverpool and Egypt star Mohamed Salah criticised Europe’s football governing body Uefa for posting a tribute that did not mention how the former international died.

Mid-air collision kills figure skating world champions

Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov, figure skating world champions in 1994 and two-time Olympians from Russia, tragically died on January 29 when the American Eagle flight they were on collided with a US Army helicopter near Washington DC, killing all 67 people aboard both aircraft, including several other skaters and coaches.