SOCCER: Valencia coach Fernando Martin dies in Indonesia boat accident

Valencia CF coach Fernando Martin and three of his children died after their boat capsized in Indonesia, while other family members and crew were rescued.

Reuters

December 28, 2025

Rescue teams depart in boats after a boat carrying several people sank off the coast of Indonesia in extreme weather, Spanish authorities and an Indonesian news agency said, Labuan Bajo, Indonesia, in this screengrab from the video obtained by Reuters on December 27, 2025. A Spanish family, father and three of his children, have been missing since Friday night when the boat capsized in waves of up to three meters in the Padar Island Strait. Indonesia's National Search and Rescue Agency (BASARNAS)/Handout via REUTERS

Reuters

Fernando Martin, a coach with Valencia CF, has died with three members of his family after their boat capsized in Indonesia, Spanish football clubs said.

Valencia said they were "deeply saddened by the passing of Fernando Martin, coach of Valencia CF Femenino B, and three of his children, in the tragic boat accident in Indonesia, as confirmed by local authorities".

Indonesian and Spanish authorities said on Saturday that Martin and three of his children were missing after the boat carrying 11 people sank in extreme weather on Friday in the Padar Island Strait near the island of Labuan Bajo, a popular tourist spot.

The search was continuing on Sunday morning, Fathur Rahman, mission coordinator for Indonesia's search and rescue agency in the area, told Reuters.

Real Madrid CF also sent condolences for Martin, 44, a former player in second-tier Spanish football who was appointed coach of the Valencia Women's B team this year.

His wife and one daughter, as well as four crew members and a tour guide, were rescued and safe, SAR said in a statement.

-Dewi Kurniawati/Reuters