Savy King of Angel City has heart surgery after collapsing during the NWSL game | Angel City FC

Angel City’s defender Savy King recovered from heart surgery as a result of his collapse on the field in a national women’s football league match on Friday evening.

King was taken to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles after the emergency in the second half of Angel City’s match against the Utah Royals. Doctors who evaluated King discovered a cardiac anomaly and she underwent surgery on Tuesday.

“She rests now and recovers herself surrounded by her family, and her prognosis is excellent,” the team said in a statement.

King’s family has published a joint declaration thanking the team’s medical staff, King’s colleagues and the hospital’s medical staff for their care.

“On behalf of our whole family, with Savy, we were so moved by the love and support of players, staff, staff, fans and the Angel City community, as well as football fans across the country,” the statement said. “We are fortunate to share that Savy recovers well and we are impatient to have him soon with us.”

The players on both sides were visibly shaken while the coaches rushed alongside King after it fell in the 74th minute of the Friday match. She was treated for 10 minutes before being stretched from the field and taken to the hospital.

“We are grateful to Angel City’s medical staff as well as local paramedical paramedics who managed this difficult situation transparently,” the NWSL said in a statement on Saturday.

In an Instagram story, the attacker of the national team of Washington Spirit Trinity Rodman offered prayers for King and his family, adding: “In any world, this game would not have continued.”

The league said in its declaration that it would examine its policies to determine whether changes should be made. The NWSL rules for 2025 indicate that the league “recognizes that emergencies can occur which make the start or the progress of a game not recommended or dangerous for participants and spectators. Certain categories of events automatically trigger the league office to be assessed if a delay or a postponement is necessary. ”

There was 12 minutes of downtime added to the match. Angel City won the 2-0 match.

King, 20, was the second overall choice of the NWSL 2024 draft by expansion Bay FC and played 18 games for the club. She was exchanged in Angel City in February and started in the eight games against the team this season.