JOHANNESBURG (AP) — South Africa midfielder Jayden Adams, who played at the World Cup, has died. He was 25.
His death was confirmed by Gayton McKenzie, South Africa’s minister of sport, arts and culture, in a statement on Saturday.
“It is with profound shock and a heavy heart that I have learnt of the passing of Jayden Adams, midfielder for Mamelodi Sundowns and Bafana Bafana, at the age of 25," McKenzie posted on X.
"South African football has lost one of its brightest young talents, and our nation mourns alongside his family, his team-mates and the millions of supporters.”
Adams helped South Africa reach the World Cup knockout stage for the first time.
Further details of his death were not given.
“The cause of Jayden’s passing has not yet been confirmed," McKenzie said. “I wish to appeal to members of the media and the public to exercise restraint and compassion, and to refrain from speculation.”
A moment of silence in honor of Adams was held ahead of the World Cup quarterfinal between Norway and England in Miami Gardens, Florida, on Saturday.
Adams started in South Africa's first Group A games against Mexico and Czech Republic. McKenzie said Adams played the second game only hours after learning that his grandmother had died. He came on as a second-half substitute in the third game against South Korea.
Adams played several seasons for Stellenbosch before joining Mamelodi Sundowns last year. He helped the club win the CAF (African) Champions League this year.
“Death has cruelly stolen one of our own. It has robbed our nation of a remarkable footballer,” the South African Football Players Union posted on X. “We will forever remember his humility, his extraordinary talent and the pride with which he represented South Africa. Rest in eternal peace, Jayden. You will never be forgotten.”
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and the South African Federation of Trade Unions also expressed their condolences.
See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here
Players, officials and fans stand for a moment of silence for South Africa's Jayden Adams during the World Cup quarterfinal soccer match between Norway and England in Miami Gardens, Fla., Saturday, July 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier)
FILE - Mamelodi Sundowns' Jayden Adams (8) controls the ball during a Club World Cup group F soccer match against Ulsan HD, June 18, 2025 in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack, File)
FILE - South Africa's Jayden Adams during the World Cup Group A soccer match between Czechia and South Africa in Atlanta, Thursday, June 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Stew Milne, File)
WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge said Saturday she intends to appoint an ex-top federal prosecutor in the nation's capital during President Donald Trump's first term to investigate whether she was purposefully misled by lawyers and administration officials in a lawsuit challenging one of his prized Washington construction projects, the renovation of a historic public golf course along the Potomac River.
Jessie Liu, a former U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, would examine whether officials with the Interior Department and the National Park Service and attorneys with the Department of Justice violated ethics or misled U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes during the course of the case that was initiated in February by the DC Preservation League and two golfers.
The Republican administration plans to close the East Potomac Golf Course and park on Nov. 15 with the intention of constructing a “World Class, championship-level golf course that is capable of hosting major events." An injunction issued by Reyes last month temporarily bars the government from removing or damaging any additional trees on the course and the administration must give 10 days’ notice in writing before making any “irreparable modification” to any “forms or features” of the course while the lawsuit is active.
Reyes is giving each side a chance to be heard on her plan to name Liu as special master in the case. They must do so in writing by Friday, when the next court hearing in the dispute is scheduled.
Reyes, who was nominated by Democratic President Joe Biden, wants to know whether federal officials lied about the extent of renovation plans during months of hearings. She also wants to know if they were truthful about various steps they took, including cutting hundreds of trees early last month. She announced during a hearing Oct. 30 that she was starting a formal investigation of the government's conduct. Earlier in the case, she had rejected numerous motions from the plaintiffs to step in, saying she trusted the government attorneys.
As the city's chief federal prosecutor, Liu oversaw some of the matters referred to her office by then-special counsel Robert Mueller during his investigation into possible ties between Trump’s 2016 campaign and Russia. Trump later nominated her to be associate attorney general, the third-highest ranking Justice Department job.
Liu withdrew from consideration after running into opposition on the Republican-led Senate Judiciary Committee because of her past membership in a lawyers’ group that has supported abortion rights. She eventually resigned from the group because, she said previously, it took left-leaning positions, and she is now part of her own law firm, Liu Shur Kravis LLP.
David Super, a law professor at the Georgetown University Law Center, said the initiation of a formal investigation by a judge to look into the conduct of a trial's participants "can be a precursor to holding someone in contempt of court.”
Super said it also is a reflection “of the difficulty she had in determining who initiated the tree-cutting in defiance of the assurances DOJ provided. She doesn’t have the time to keep holding long, complex hearings and so wants a special master to narrow the issues.”
Reyes ordered the Oct. 30 hearing after multiple Truth Social posts by Trump indicated there were plans for the golf course and construction was expected to begin Nov. 15. Trump said the park would be closed for 15 months while work goes on.
The presidential posts, which began Oct. 18, created a tense dynamic in multiple court hearings afterward when administration officials could not confirm the existence of the plans under questioning from Reyes. She eventually asked whom she should trust. The Justice Department filed notice Oct. 28 that the plans were real.
Bedayn reported from Austin, Texas.
People drive a golf cart past removed trees at East Potomac Park Golf Course, Monday, Oct. 26, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
The Washington Monument is seen as workers remove trees at East Potomac Park Golf Course, Monday, Oct. 26, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
The Washington Monument is seen past stumps of removed trees at East Potomac Park Golf Course, Monday, Oct. 26, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
A golfer watches as trees are removed at East Potomac Park Golf Course, Monday, Oct. 26, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
FILE - Jessie Liu, then U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, speaks during a news conference at the Justice Department in Washington, Dec. 15, 2017. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)
