Fulham Confirm Tragic Death Of Supporter Who Suffered Cardiac Arrest

The entrance to Fulham FC's Craven Cottage A Fulham fan has been confirmed as dead, following a cardiac arrest during Saturday's match against Blackpool FC at Craven Cottage.

The Championship match at Fulham’s home ground was delayed for 41 minutes while the supporter received emergency medical treatment before being rushed to hospital. The club has named the supporter as Paul Parish.

Fulham released a statement on Saturday evening, announcing the supporter had died, and sending their condolences to Mr Parish's family and friends.

“It is with immense sadness that we inform fans of the passing of supporter, Paul Parish,” a club statement read.

“Paul suffered a cardiac arrest and received treatment in the Hammersmith Stand at this afternoon's match before being transferred to the hospital. He sadly passed away this evening.

“Our condolences and the thoughts of everyone at Fulham Football Club go out to Paul's family, friends and loved ones.

“The family would like to thank the fans of Fulham and Blackpool for the respect and care they showed as well as all staff at Craven Cottage and at the hospital for their assistance, care and attention. Rest in Peace Paul.”



Blackpool FC took to Twitter to say: “We are all deeply saddened to learn of Paul's passing. Our thoughts and condolences go out to Paul's family and all those connected to @FulhamFC at this time.”

This weekend sadly also saw medical emergencies in the stands at other grounds around the county with a stoppage at Boundary Park, where an Oldham fan needed treatment during the League Two clash against Rochdale. Again, the players were taken off the pitch to allow the doctors to provide help. Also, just before half-term in Wycombe's 1-0 defeat against MK Dons, play was paused for a third medical emergency of the afternoon, albeit for two minutes.

This tragedy and a worrying trend of incidents in stadiums during recent games, provides a stark reminder of the need for defibrillators in all stadia and facilities, as previously reported in Football & Stadium Management.

The football pitch at Craven Cottage, Fulham FC