{"id":7000,"date":"2025-09-08T20:59:39","date_gmt":"2025-09-08T20:59:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/2025\/09\/08\/soccer-player-16-dies-in-horror-crash-just-days-before-joining-a-new-club-soccer-sports\/"},"modified":"2025-09-08T20:59:39","modified_gmt":"2025-09-08T20:59:39","slug":"soccer-player-16-dies-in-horror-crash-just-days-before-joining-a-new-club-soccer-sports","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/2025\/09\/08\/soccer-player-16-dies-in-horror-crash-just-days-before-joining-a-new-club-soccer-sports\/","title":{"rendered":"Soccer player, 16, dies in horror crash just days before joining a new club | Soccer | Sports"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p>A promising young footballer to join major league soccer tragically lost his life at the age of 16 in a catastrophic car accident.<\/p>\n<p>On vacation, Edder&#8217;s Smick Valencia was scheduled to travel to the US this week to sign a deal with the New York Red Bulls after showing off his talent at the Under 16 Bulls Cup in February. However, he died Sunday in a fatal incident in Guaheny, near Cali, Colombia.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>His club, Academia Alemana Popaya (AAFP), known for developing internationally competent players, confirmed the heartbreaking news.<\/p>\n<p>A club spokesperson expressed his sadness. &#8220;It is deeply saddened to report the death of player Smick Valencia Ambira in a car accident while on vacation in Guaheny.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The club vowed to support Eeder&#8217;s family and to cherish his memory at AAFP, saying, &#8220;He will be in our hearts forever.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The local report also suggests that they are poised to play for Columbia&#8217;s Under-17 National Team at the 2026 South American Under-17 Championship.<\/p>\n<p>    For the latest broken stories and headlines, sign up for the Daily Express Transfer Newsletter. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>The young striker&#8217;s dream transfer to MLS ends abruptly, mourning his loved ones, teammates and supporters.<\/p>\n<p>Authorities are currently investigating what led to the tragic accident.<\/p>\n<p>Online tributes poured into for young talent. One fan wrote to X:<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>Others express their apologies, saying, &#8220;Strong to his family, friends and teammates.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>While another commented on the pure tragedy of the situation, &#8220;It&#8217;s a tragic story for a child who was only 16 years old.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.express.co.uk\/sport\/football\/2105940\/Eder-Smic-Valencia-dead-MLS\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A promising young footballer to join major league soccer tragically lost his life at the age of 16 in a catastrophic car accident. On vacation, Edder&#8217;s Smick Valencia was scheduled to travel to the US this week to sign a deal with the New York Red Bulls after showing off his talent at the Under<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7001,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-7000","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-matches"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Soccer player, 16, dies in horror crash just days before joining a new club | Soccer | Sports - EPL VIP \u2013 Latest English Premier League News &amp; Updates<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/2025\/09\/08\/soccer-player-16-dies-in-horror-crash-just-days-before-joining-a-new-club-soccer-sports\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Soccer player, 16, dies in horror crash just days before joining a new club | Soccer | Sports - EPL VIP \u2013 Latest English Premier League News &amp; Updates\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A promising young footballer to join major league soccer tragically lost his life at the age of 16 in a catastrophic car accident. 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