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A scary moment took place when ESPN soccer analyst and former English Premier League goalkeeper Shaka Hislop collapsed during the live broadcast of the friendly between AC Milan and Real Madrid at the Rose Bowl on Sunday (July 23).
Hislop, 54, was standing with colleague Dan Thomas next to the pitch during pregame coverage when he suddenly fell over.
“Shak! Shak! We need some help,” Thomas yelled after Hislop collapsed. "We need medical!"
ESPN's coverage quickly shifted to a commercial break as medical personnel attended to Hislop. Thomas tweeted that his colleague was "conscious" shortly after kickoff and gave an on-air update at halftime.
“Obviously far too early to make any sort of diagnosis, but the important thing is, that Shaka’s conscious and we spoke to his family as well, because you imagine seeing that happen live. We spoke to his wife and things are looking OK,” Thomas said.
Hislop has contributed to ESPN's soccer coverage since 2008. The London native spent the majority of his playing career in the English Premier League for both Newcastle United (1995-98) and West Ham United (1998-02, 2005-06), as well Portsmouth (2002-05), which was promoted from EFL League One to the EPL during his tenure, and Reading (1992-95), which was on the brink of promotion from the EFL to EPL prior to his departure.