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Racing Louisville and USWNT midfielder Savannah DeMelo is suing a hospital and two doctors for alleged negligence leading up to her on-field cardiac arrest in September 2025.
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Then 27 years old, DeMelo collapsed late in the first half of a game against Seattle Reign. No explanation for the incident was provided until Tuesday, when the midfielder took to Instagram to reveal “an undiagnosed cardiac arrhythmia” that led to cardiac arrest.
Documents filed with Jefferson Circuit Court in Kentucky show DeMelo is now taking legal action against University of Louisville Health (UofL Health) and two doctors, Dr. Sarabjeet Suri and Dr. Jennifer Daily, alleging the group failed to diagnose the condition.
“Such negligence was a substantial factor in causing DeMelo to suffer severe physical injuries, including, but not limited to, her cardiac arrest,” the claim reads,
Dr. Daily is understood to operate as Racing Louisville’s chief medical officer and the lawsuit states DeMelo was under her care between January 2024 and July 2026.
In March 2025, Dr. Daily is said to have referred DeMelo to Dr. Suri for further tests on symptoms of chest pain and shortness of breath. It was only after the cardiac arrest in September that DeMelo was diagnosed with an abnormal heart rhythm.
DeMelo’s History of On-Field Medical Scares
On March 22, 2025, DeMelo was forced to leave a game against Bay FC early for medical issues.
DeMelo sat down on the pitch and informed the referee of her concerns-dizziness, tight chest, increased heart rate and difficulty breathing-which led to her being stretchered off the field.
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Having previously been diagnosed with Graves’ disease and hyperthyroidism, the belief was that DeMelo’s scare was the result of an issue with her ongoing medication.
“Playing a 90-minute game felt unbearable,” DeMelo told ESPN at the time. “I would get to maybe the 25th minute, and I felt like my heart was just like beating so fast, like out of my chest. I felt so out of breath, so out of shape. I didn’t really know what was going on.”
There has been no confirmed link between the March 2025 incident and DeMelo’s cardiac arrest later that year.
DeMelo, who has made seven appearances for the USWNT since her debut in 2023, alleges that the failure to identify her abnormal heart rhythm not only led to the cardiac arrest, but then forced her to miss out on earnings during the recovery period.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as USWNT’s Savannah DeMelo Sues Doctors After Cardiac Arrest on Pitch.
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This story was originally published September 17, 2026 at 5:15 AM.