Asamoah suffered a broken neck in a freak accident when he collided with an advertising board during a club match in China.
Published October 9, 2025
Togolese national footballer Samuel Asamoah has broken his neck and may be left paralyzed after colliding with a pitch-side advertising board during a match in China, his club announced.
Video footage shows the 31-year-old player being pushed head-first into an LED advertising panel as he scrambles for the ball during a match in China’s second division Ligue 1 on Sunday.
The midfielder’s club, Guangxi Pingguo, announced that Asamoah suffered a fractured neck and nerve damage and subsequently underwent surgery.
“He is at risk of severe paraplegia and will miss all remaining games this season. His career could also be seriously affected,” the club said in a statement on Monday.
On Wednesday, the club announced that Asamoah is recovering from surgery and is in stable condition.
“Guangxi Pingguo FC would like to sincerely thank all the fans and people from all walks of life for their concern and support for Samuel Asamoah,” the team said.
“His recovery status will be announced in due course following follow-up tests.”
Asamoah spent most of his career in Belgium before moving to China last year.
He has played for Togo six times.
State media outlet The Paper cited Chinese soccer authorities as saying the advertising display was placed 3 meters (10 feet) from the field in accordance with international standards.
As a result of this incident, the opposing player, Chongqing Tonglianglong midfielder Zhang Zhixiong, was given a yellow card.
