Mircea Lucescu, who would have been the oldest active manager at the 2026 World Cup had Romania qualified, collapsed in front of his players while overseeing a team meeting on Sunday.
Mircea Lucescu leads Romania at age 80 (Image: Serhat Cagdas/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Romania coach Mircea Lucescu collapsed during a team meeting on Sunday and was rushed to hospital. Mr Lucescu, 80, is currently in stable condition and will undergo further tests.
The Romanian, who has been battling health issues in recent months, was preparing his players to face Slovakia in a friendly on Tuesday. Both teams saw their hopes of qualifying for the World Cup end on Thursday after Romania lost 1-0 to Turkey and Slovakia lost 4-3 at home to Kosovo.
According to local reports, Lucescu sat down in a chair and “switched off.” After he was first assisted by the team’s medical staff, two ambulances arrived at the training camp in Romania.
Lucescu gave an update on his condition to Romanian media outlet GSP. “I’m fine now,” said the former Shakhtar Donetsk coach. “I will undergo further tests.”
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According to Turkish publication Fanatic, Lucescu joked to doctors in the ambulance: “You were fast. You’ll be a good striker!”
Romania’s World Cup dreams ended with a narrow loss in the play-off semi-finals in Istanbul. Brighton star Ferdi Kadioglu’s second-half goal earned Turkey a place in Tuesday’s final against Kosovo.
It has been 28 years since Romania last played in a World Cup, reaching the round of 16 in France in 1998. Lucescu’s team only finished third in their qualifying group this time around, but their performance in the Nations League for the 2024-25 season earned them a place in the play-offs.
Lucescu captained the national team at the 1970 World Cup in Mexico. The 80-year-old has enjoyed an itinerant career as a manager spanning six decades. In total, he has coached for 14 different clubs and countries, some even twice.
Mircea Lucescu won the UEFA Cup with Shakhtar Donetsk in 2009 (Image: Martin Rose/Bongarts/Getty Images)
Lucescu spent 12 years as manager of Shakhtar, where the Ukrainian giants won the UEFA Cup, but also managed Inter Milan, Galatasaray, Besiktas, Zenit St. Petersburg and the Turkish national team. He is currently in his second stint as Romania national team coach.
Speaking to the Guardian ahead of the loss to Turkey, Lucescu said: “When the doctors told me that I could continue coaching, I focused on what I had to do for Romania. I spoke to the federation, but they said that they could not find a solution to the situation.”
“I’m not at my best and if I had another option I would have quit. But I insist: I can’t leave like a coward. We have to believe in our chances of qualifying.”
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