Grant Wahl's brother Eric has paid an emotional tribute to his brother on , a week after he died while reporting on Argentina vs Holland at the World Cup in Qatar.
In an emotional Twitter thread reflecting on their lives growing up as children in to the week he died, Eric Wahl also appeared to apologize for first suggesting there had been foul play in his brother's death.

It has since emerged that .
Earlier in Qatar, Wahl had been prevented from entering the stadium to report on the USA's game against Wales because he was wearing a t-shirt with a soccer ball surrounded by a rainbow.

After news of Grant's death emerged, Eric took to Instagram saying 'I am gay, I am the reason he wore the rainbow shirt' and said he thought he brother had been killed.'

Writing on Twitter on Friday, Eric Wahl said: 'In the span of a few years, I watched Celine's father die on a gurney, my mother died, my mother-in-law died, my father died; last month I had to put down my 19yr-old cat.

Last Friday, I'd agreed to a divorce from the love of my life, & later that day, my brother died.
Eric Wahl (right), the brother of American journalist Grant Wahl (left) has reflected on his brother's life in a detailed and emotional thread of Twitter posts 
Wahl died last Friday in Qatar, where he was covering the soccer World Cup tournament 
A tribute is shown on a screen before England's quarterfinal game vs.

France last Saturday
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'I felt, feel, obliterated. Grant was my confidante, my champion, my friend, my defender, my brother & only sibling. Grant knew things that happened to me growing up gay in KS.
'We see your well wishes & kind words.

We've read your own touching stories. We're grateful. We see the cruel comments, too. All I can say is we're just people trying our best to grieve under circumstances that put us on the spot.
'Grant knew my anxiety issues were a big reason why I never wanted a public spotlight, & the past week has been a media education for me.

I'm sorry I didn't do a better job. Thank you to Grant's friends & colleagues who reached out. Thank you to the USMNT player who reached out.'
Eric also opened up on the support his brother gave him as he came to terms with his sexuality, writing: 'As we grew up, Grant saw my discomfort in adolescence & my early 20s as I came to terms with being gay. 
'He knew about the harassment & physical abuse I'd received & their effects on my psyche.

He listened, he loved, he supported without question. And I felt so lucky.
'He cheered me through grad school graduations at ESU & the University of Idaho. I hosted Thanksgiving in my Moscow apartment one year for all of us.
He & I had regular conversations about everything in our lives & our minds. 
'We cried together & laughed together right into the week he left us.'
 Wahl was a former Sports Illustrated sportswriter who moved to the Substack online platform
Grant Wahl and wife Dr.

Celine Gounder in a photo from his Instagram dated in 2020. The couple lived in New York City with their two dogs
Wahl's widow, Celine Gounder, said to CBS that the family had endured a great deal of loss in recent years.
'I think in these kinds of moments you really have to show grace to how people grieve,' she said.

'And my family, my husband's family, our family has had a lot of loss in the last few years. 
'My brother-in-law was there when my father passed away. He was there to see the chest compressions and the shocks. He was there with my mom.
Shortly thereafter, his mom passed away, then his dad.'



Eric also added, separately to his thread: 'Please know that Grant's death had absolutely nothing to do with vaccines or COVID.

All statements & insinuations to the contrary are 100% false. We've seen Alex-Jones-levels of awful things in this regard.' 
Wahl's body was returned to the United States on Monday and an independent autopsy established his cause of death.
Wahl wrote early last week that he had visited a hospital while in Qatar and that health officials told him he likely had bronchitis.
Wahl had complained of respiratory problems in the days before he passed away in Qatar
He had complained of respiratory problems earlier in the week and had been treated for a possible case of bronchitis.

Wahl fell back in his seat in a section of Lusail Stadium reserved for journalists Transportation Schedule During Ramadan extra time of the game, and reporters nearby called for assistance.
Emergency services workers responded very quickly, treated him for 20 or 30 minutes on site and then took him out on a stretcher.

The World Cup organizing committee said he was taken to Doha's Hamad General Hospital, but it did not state a cause of death.
Wahl wrote for Sports Illustrated for more than two decades and then started his own website. He was a major voice informing an American public of soccer during a time of increased interest after the United States hosted the 1994 World Cup.
He also brought a critical eye to the international organizing bodies of the sport.