Young Beijing Guoan defender Guo Jiaxuan who was strucked in the head and fell into a coma during a training camp in Madrid has died at the age of 18..

Many global media organizations including Southern Metropolis Daily, Associated Press, and Bernama have all reported on Thursday that Guo Jiaxuan, a young defender of Beijing Guoan, was hit in the head and fell into a deep coma after being brain dead when he went to Madrid for training. After fighting the disease for 41 days, he was still unable to recover and died at Beijing Tiantan Hospital on March 19 at the age of 18.

According to reports, when he passed away, he was only one day away from his 19th birthday, which made his sudden death particularly sad.

The sad news of Jiaxuan's death was confirmed and released by the Beijing Football Association. The official statement read: "On the evening of March 19, 2025, Beijing Guoan youth player Guo Jiaxuan unfortunately passed away."

"As an outstanding young player, Jiaxuan was full of love for football. On the pitch, he worked hard and pursued his dreams, deeply infecting everyone who cared and loved him! We are deeply saddened and extremely sorry for Jiaxuan's death!"

"Since Jiaxuan was accidentally injured on February 6, 2025, Spanish time, we have made every effort to coordinate medical resources for treatment and try our best to meet the needs of his family."

"In order to avoid irrelevant personnel interfering with medical work and take into account the feelings of the family, we have not continuously disclosed information, including the match process and medical plan."

"After coordinating with the Spanish side, we have obtained the training match video, notarized the whole process, and organized experts to analyze it. We will do our best to protect Jiaxuan's legal rights and interests and assist his family in the aftermath. Jiaxuan, rest in peace! "

Beijing Guoan also issued an obituary at the same time, which read: "We are very sad to inform you that Beijing Guoan youth player Guo Jiaxuan passed away on the evening of March 19, 2025."

"We have lost a child who loves football. May Jiaxuan rest in peace! Thank you to everyone for your concern and help since Guo Jiaxuan was injured. The club will continue to do its best to properly handle the aftermath and provide all necessary help and support to Guo Jiaxuan's family. May Jiaxuan rest in peace! "

After this regrettable tragedy, Bayern Munich, another club where Jiaxuan played before, also sent a message to mourn his death. Even Sky Sports' renowned Italian transfer journalist Fabrizio Romano, also sent a message to Jiaxuan's family through his personal official X (Twitter) account to express his condolences.

Since the Beijing Football Association and Beijing Guoan had blocked the news after Jiaxuan's fatal accident, his family is still accusing the authorities in pursuit of the truth.

According to The Paper, Jiaxuan's father was interviewed by a reporter from Red Star News.

In his interview, Jiaxuan's father said that he wanted to find out the truth about his son's death, such as whether Guo Jiaxuan's personal safety and commercial insurance were guaranteed when he went overseas for training.

About Guo Jiaxuan

Guo Jiaxuan was born on March 20, 2006 in Fuyang, Anhui Province, China. He was 1.82 meters tall and played as a center back.

Jiaxuan joined Beijing Guoan's youth academy at a young age. In April 2021, he was selected for the first 05 and 06 elite youth player training camp in 2021 organized by the Chinese Football Association. In December of the following year, he became a member of the Chinese U17s national team.

In March 2023, Jiaxuan begun playing for Beijing Guoan U21s team, and in August of the same year, he went to Bayern Munich's youth academy selection program. He was the only Chinese player invited to participate in this program at that time.

What happened

In February 2025, Jiaxuan was arranged by the Beijing Football Association to fly to Madrid, the capital of Spain, to participate in a training camp.

On the morning of February 6, local time in Spain, in a teaching match between the Beijing Men's U20s Football Team and the Spanish non-league club Alcobendas, Jiaxuan was hit in the head by the opponent player's knee during a tackle and fell into a coma.

The medical staff of both teams rushed onto the pitch for on-site rescue at the first time, and then ambulances and helicopters arrived at the scene one after another. Local medical staff urgently rescued and transferred Jiaxuan to the local authoritative neurological hospital in Spain by rescue helicopter for treatment.

At that time, the doctor diagnosed that Jiaxuan had excessive intracranial hemorrhage and his life was seriously threatened. After nearly 4 hours of full rescue, Jiaxuan was diagnosed as brain death.

Jiaxuan's brother posted on Weibo to expose the incident

On February 11, 2025, Jiaxuan's brother Guo Jiayi posted on Weibo under the name "Daqi Yahabibi" that his younger brother, Jiaxuan, was seriously injured and brain dead during the training camp of the Beijing National Team, but his subsequent treatment and compensation were not guaranteed when he returned to China.

The next morning, the Beijing Football Association responded that it had reached an agreement with the family to bring Guo Jiaxuan back to China for further treatment, and the Beijing Football Association would do its best to guarantee the subsequent treatment.

Afterwards, the family repeatedly emphasized that they wanted to know whether Jiaxuan and other players were equipped with complete sports insurance when they went abroad for training and competition, but a local doctor rudely said: "Since you have chosen football, a high-risk sport, you must bear the risks."

In addition to not knowing the specific insurance terms of Jiaxuan, the family's request to view the match's replay video was also blocked. The family questioned whether the treatment measures were appropriate and complete when Jiaxuan was sent to the hospital.

On February 13, 2025, the Beijing Sports Bureau said it had paid attention to the matter, but did not disclose any progress. At the same time, the Chinese Embassy in Spain has intervened in the coordination.

Return to China for rescue

According to local Spanish law, after the patient is diagnosed with brain death, the local hospital has the right to terminate treatment. In order to strive for a glimmer of hope, the Chinese Embassy in Spain has always urged the hospital to continue to spare no effort to treat Jiaxuan, and coordinated domestic neurological experts with Western attending doctors to conduct remote online consultations.

At noon on February 7, the relevant person in charge of the Chinese Embassy in Spain rushed to the hospital, expressed to the hospital a strong desire to continue treatment, and actively coordinated international medical charter flights to transfer back to China for treatment.

At the morning of February 8, local time, Jiaxuan's family had arrived at the Spanish hospital for treatment, learned about the treatment, and fully participated in the treatment.

Under the full coordination of the embassy, Beijing Guoan and other parties, the local hospital agreed to cooperate in transferring Jiaxuan back to China for treatment on February 10.

On February 12, Jiaxuan returned to Beijing for further treatment, and all routes and transfer procedures related to international medical charter flights were completed and determined.

On the morning of February 14, Jiayi said that his brother had returned to China and was currently receiving emergency treatment at Tiantan Hospital.

After that, Jiaxuan's condition did not improve and he continued to be in a severe coma. On March 18, after the doctor confirmed again that he could not wake up, the family celebrated Jiaxuan's 19th birthday in advance and decided to remove the tube and officially give up treatment that night.

During the years he played for Beijing Guoan, Jiaxuan represented the Chinese Super League club in the National U Series and Youth Super League, and was selected as the best player many times for his outstanding performance. He was the "Future Star" of the Chinese football defense.