Nigerian Football mourns the loss of Gift Atulewa

The Nigerian football community is in mourning following the death of former player Gift Atulewa, who passed away at the age of 38, reportedly due to high blood pressure. The tragedy comes just a month after the death of his wife, a loss that is believed to have worsened his health condition.

Atulewa was a member of the Nigerian squad that reached the final of the 2005 FIFA Under-20 World Youth Championship, and his passing marks the third premature death of a player from that talented team.

According to reports, Atulewa had recently travelled to the Ivory Coast for a coaching course. While there, he contracted malaria, and his pre-existing high blood pressure reportedly worsened.

A spokesperson for the Delta State Football Association told Premium Times, “We just buried his wife last month, and that may have contributed to this development. He had blood pressure issues but had been managing it. The day before yesterday, his condition worsened, and he was taken to the hospital.
They diagnosed malaria, but his blood pressure continued to rise. We lost him at 7 a.m. on Tuesday.”

Atulewa had been participating in an ex-international football tournament in Delta State, where he scored the opening goal of the competition three weeks ago with a trademark free kick. His unexpected death is a significant loss for the local football community.

Atulewa is the third player from Nigeria’s 2005 U-20 team to pass away prematurely. Former teammate Olufemi Adebayo died at 25 in a car accident in Greece in 2011, and Isaac Promise, who played three times for Nigeria’s senior team, passed away at 31 due to a heart attack in 2019.

Atulewa spent his club career playing in Nigeria for Bayelsa United, Ocean Boys, and Warri Warriors. His death has sparked a wave of tributes across the football community.

“I was heartbroken to hear of Gift Atulewa’s passing on November 12 at just 38, reportedly due to high blood pressure,” said Nigerian journalist Shina Oludare. “Gift was part of Nigeria’s silver-winning squad at the 2005 FIFA U-20 World Cup, but sadly, his career never fully recovered after that. May his soul rest in peace, and may God comfort his family in this difficult time.”

Many fans took to social media to express their grief, with one user on X (formerly Twitter) writing, “Oh! Gift Atulewa. This is sad. May his soul rest in peace.”