SAO PAULO, Brazil (AP) -- Sao Caetano defender Serginho died Wednesday after collapsing during a Brazilian championship soccer match.
The 30-year-old player likely suffered cardiac arrest, doctor Marco Aurelio Cunha said. The official cause of death was not immediately released.
Serginho collapsed away from the play 59 minutes into the match against Sao Paulo at Morumbi Stadium.
Players from both teams quickly called for medical assistance when Serginho fell unconscious inside Sao Caetano's penalty box. Doctors rushed to the field and attempted to revive him CPR.
Serginho was still unconscious when he was taken to Hospital Sao Luiz in Sao Paulo, doctors said.
Players watched in apparent disbelief as Serginho was taken away from the field in an ambulance, some crying and others praying. The game was suspended shortly after the Serginho was stricken.
"We did what we could do, but the situation was very serious from the moment he fell to the ground," doctor Jose Sanchez said.
Serginho is survived by his wife, Eliane, and his 4-year-old son.
Earlier this year, a third-division player collapsed and died during training in Budapest, Hungary, and Hungarian player Miklos Feher collapsed in Portugal during a match between his club Benfica and Vitoria Guimaraes. He died shortly after in hospital.
In 2003, Cameroon star Marc-Vivien Foe collapsed during a semifinal match at the Confederations Cup and later died. He was found to have had a heart attack caused by an enlarged left ventricle.
