Iker Casillas and other football players to suffer cardiac-related illness – in pictures

Here is a look at the most recent cases of players who have either survived or died due to heart disease

Nwankwo Kanu: Not long after helping Nigeria to an Olympic gold medal in the 1996 Atlanta Games, Kanu underwent a medical examination while at Inter Milan, which revealed a heart defect. The then 20-year-old underwent surgery to replace an aortic valve and did not return to the Serie A club until the following year. Laurence Griffiths / Getty Images

Marc-Vivien Foe: The Cameroonian's death on June 26, 2003 during their Fifa Confederations Cup semi-final match against Colombia was said to be heart-related. The autopsy revealed a hereditary condition called hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, which is known to increase the risk of sudden death during physical exercise. He was 28.

Khalilou Fadiga: Even before the Senegal international made an appearance for Bolton Wanderers, the then 29-year-old collapsed prior to a match in October 2004. He had to be fitted with a defibrillator due to an irregular heartbeat. However, Fadiga returned to the Bolton squad in early 2005 and played in five games. Seyllou / AFP

Andy Scott: The then Leyton Orient footballer was forced to retire in April 2005, at the age of 32, after being diagnosed with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a condition similar to what Marc-Vivien Foe had.

Fabrice Muamba: The Zaire-born English footballer suffered a cardiac arrest and collapsed during the first half of an FA Cup quarter-final match between Bolton and Tottenham Hotspur on March 17, 2012. The then 23-year-old received attention on the pitch from medical personnel before being taken to the specialist coronary care unit of the London Chest Hospital. He survived but retired from football subsequently. Michael Regan / Getty Images

Piermario Morosini: The midfielder collapsed in the first half of Livorno's Serie B match at Pescara on April 14, 2012. But the Italian wasn't so lucky as he died at the age of 25 after suffering cardiac arrest. Luciano Pieranunzi / AFP

Gregory Mertens: The Belgian central defender suffered a cardiac arrest during a reserve game for Lokeren against KRC Genk on April 27, 2015. He was just 24 years old. Francois Walschaerts / Getty Images

Cheick Tiote: The former Newcastle United defensive midfielder from Ivory Coast died on 5 June 2017, just 16 days before his 31st birthday, after suffering a cardiac arrest at a training session in Beijing. Serena Taylor / Getty Images

Davide Astori: The 31-year-old Italian defender died on March 4, 2018 in his sleep in a hotel in Udine prior to Fiorentina's match against Udinese. It was proven to be caused by cardiac arrest. Alessandro Bianchi / Reuters

Papy Faty: Previously reported to have had a heart condition, the 28-year-old Burundian midfielder collapsed and died on April 25 while playing a match in Eswatini – formerly Swaziland – for a club known as Malanti Chiefs FC. Lefty Shivambu / Getty Images

On Wednesday, Iker Casillas joined a growing list of footballers to have suffered heart attacks or other cardiac-related illnesses.

Casillas tweeted  'everything under control' hours after being hospitalised, but the next most recent attack came just last week when experienced Burundi international Papy Faty died after collapsing during an eSwatini – formerly Swaziland – league match.

The most high-profile recent case was former Fiorentina captain Davide Astori, who died of a heart attack in his sleep prior to a Serie A match with Udinese in March 2018.

In his piece from seven years ago, European football correspondent Ian Hawkey wrote how then Bolton Wanderers player Fabrice Muamba's collapse served as a reminder of other African footballers to have fallen.

To find out players to have either survived or died from a cardiac-related illness, browse through the photo gallery above. To move on to the next position, click the arrows on the photo, or if using a mobile device simply swipe left/right.