A footballer has died after being struck by a lightning bolt while playing football in Indonesia on Saturday.<br /><br />Video captured the exact moment the 35-year-old male victim from Subang collapsed at Siliwangi Stadium in Bandung, West Java.<br /><br />The man, later identified as Captain Raharja, was competing in a friendly football match between 2 FLO FC Bandung and FBI Subang when lightning struck him at around 4:20 pm local time on Saturday. <br /><br />Reports by local media PRFM News say that he was still breathing after the incident and rushed to a local hospital, but died after suffering intense burns. <br /><br />The video clip has since gone viral on social media, with football fans and players offering their condolences.<br /><br />'RIP to that player,' commented one X user.<br /><br />'This is the stuff of my nightmares. I lived through the San Francisco 'Quake of '89' that ended game 3 of the Baseball World Series,' wrote another.<br /><br />A third replied: 'That's awful and condolences. In my referee days, I always kept an eye on the weather, it's in the FIFA manual I believe. For exactly this reason. Don't know if that was possible here or if there was a ref. This video will make its way to FIFA and ref associations everywhere.'<br /><br />Several teams in Indonesia were seen taking a moment of silence in Septain's memory. <br /><br />A match between FBI Mageland and Erka began with players bowing their heads to commemorate the fallen sportsman. <br /><br />An analysis of the strike by Indonesia's Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) revealed that the cloud the lightning came from was just 300m above the stadium when it struck. <br /><br />The tragic incident is the second time an Indonesian footballer has been struck by lightning in the last 12 months.<br /><br />A young football player in Bojonegoro, East Java was struck by lightning during the Soeratin U-13 Cup in 2023.<br /><br />The player, who suffered cardiac arrest, was rushed off the field and taken to the Ibnu Sina Hospital in Bojonegoro for medical treatment.<br /><br />The youngster was successfully revived after medical assistance and regained consciousness after approximately 20 minutes.<br /><br />In 2023, a 21-year-old Brazilian footballer was also struck by lightning while on the pitch in Brazil. <br /><br />Caio Henrique de Lima Goncalves, 21, was playing for his Uniao Jaiirense team in a cup fixture in the southern state of Parana when he was jolted by the lightning strike<br /><br />He was rushed to hospital after collapsing on the pitch, but he later died of his injuries.<br /><br />Six other players on the pitch were also struck by the bolt of lightning and spent time in the hospital afterward.
