Former Arsenal striker Kevin Campbell dies from heart condition

• Kevin Campbell died on 15 June 2024, at the age of 54 at Manchester Royal Infirmary.
• The delay in diagnosing the heart infection did not significantly impact his death.
• The coroner concluded that Campbell died of a natural condition.

Kevin Campbell, a former Arsenal player, died in June 2024 at the age of 54 at Manchester Royal Infirmary. The coroner determined that the delay in diagnosing a rare heart infection did not significantly affect his death. Campbell was in good health until January 2024, when he was first hospitalised.

During his first hospital stay, Campbell was diagnosed with severe heart and kidney failure. After treatment, including dialysis, he was discharged. However, his health deteriorated, and he was hospitalised again in May. In June, he was diagnosed with infectious endocarditis.

An internal hospital investigation revealed that the infection could have been diagnosed earlier. Nevertheless, coroner Zak Golombek stated that Campbell would not have been able to undergo open-heart surgery, even if the infection had been detected earlier.

Coroner Golombek concluded that Kevin Campbell died from a natural condition that reached its natural end on 15 June. His death resulted from multiple organ failure caused by a heart infection.

Kevin Campbell began his professional career in 1985, joining Arsenal's first team. He made his debut with the senior team three years later, achieving his greatest successes with the club at the turn of the 1980s and 1990s. He played over 200 matches with the "Gunners" and scored 59 goals.

He won the league championship with Arsenal in 1991, as well as the FA Cup, the League Cup, and the Cup Winners' Cup. In 1994, he left the London club, moving first to Nottingham Forest and then to Trabzonspor in Turkey. He also played for Everton, West Bromwich Albion, and Cardiff.