After Fabrice Muamba collapsed and almost died while playing for Bolton Wanderers a month ago, there were renewed calls for more stringent medical checks for professional athletes.
Those calls are only set to increase following the death of Italian footballer Piermario Morosini aged just 25 on Saturday after he suffered a heart-attack while playing for Livorno against Pescara.
There have been several high-profile cases of players dying while playing what is not just a sport but a form of entertainment.
Cameroon midfielder Marc-Vivien Foe is the most high-profile casualty, collapsing during the Confederations Cup in 2003.
Ex-Spain defender Antonio Puerta and former Scotland international Phil O'Donnell died just four months apart in 2007.
In 2004, then Hungary international Miklos Feher and Brazilian defender Serginho both collapsed and died on a pitch.
While rare, such cases receive huge publicity due to the popularity and profile of football. And as ever with such tragedies there are calls to improve health and safety at sports events.
Such advancements happened after boxers Michael Watson, in 1991, and Gerald McClellan, four years later, were left paralysed after suffering blood clots on their brains during title fights. The calls for a health and safety review will be made in Italy now but this is a country where such things are already taken very seriously.