Just days after a video showed him walking off the pitch without celebrating a World Cup victory, South Africa midfielder Jayden Adams has been found dead at his home in Cape Town. He was 25.
Police in South Africa said they had opened an investigation after the body of a 25-year-old man was found at a house in Schotschekloof, a suburb in central Cape Town, on Saturday morning. The cause of death has not been confirmed.
“South Africa and Mamelodi Sundowns midfielder Jayden Adams, 25, found dead in Cape Town days after World Cup campaign.”
“It is with profound shock and a heavy heart that I have learnt of the passing of Jayden Adams,” Gayton McKenzie, South Africa's minister of sport, arts and culture, said in a statement. “South African football has lost one of its brightest young talents, and our nation mourns alongside his family, his team-mates and the millions of supporters who watched him grow from a promising academy prospect into a full Bafana Bafana international.”
McKenzie appealed for restraint, saying: “The cause of Jayden's passing has not yet been confirmed, and I wish to appeal to members of the media and the public to exercise restraint and compassion, and to refrain from speculation, while his family and Mamelodi Sundowns are given the space and privacy they need at this incredibly difficult time.”
The South African Football Players Union said it was “devastated by the untimely passing” of Adams, who made his debut for his country in 2022. “Jayden had only recently represented South Africa at the 2026 World Cup, carrying the hopes of the nation with pride, courage and distinction,” the union said. “His passing is an immeasurable loss to his family, team-mates, clubs, the football fraternity and the country at large.”
Adams started his career at Stellenbosch FC before moving to Mamelodi Sundowns in January 2025, where he won league and African Champions League titles. He was part of the South Africa squad that reached the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations semi-finals and then earned a call-up to Hugo Broos’ squad for the World Cup, where the team made history by reaching the knockout stages for the first time. Adams featured in all three group games, including starting in the 1-1 draw against the Czech Republic in Group A despite learning that his grandmother had passed away only hours before kick-off.
Fifa president Gianni Infantino said: “It's so incredibly sad to hear that South Africa midfielder Jayden Adams has passed away just weeks after featuring in his nation's historic Fifa World Cup campaign. My thoughts and condolences, as well as those of everyone at Fifa and the global football community, are with his family, friends and the entire South African football family.”
The heartbreaking footage of Adams failing to celebrate after a win went viral in the days before his death, compounding the sense of tragedy as the nation mourns one of its brightest talents.
