MARK HUGHES’ SON DIED FROM SUDDEN DEATH SYNDROME
The son of former Manchester United player Mark Hughes died from sudden death syndrome, an inquest has found.
Alex Hughes, a senior figure in the player-recruitment department at Grimsby Town, in League Two, was found collapsed on the floor of his bedroom at his Cheshire home by his two sons at 7am on June 19, a coroner was told.
Wednesday’s inquest at Cheshire Coroner’s Court heard that the 38-year-old’s eldest child, Sebastian, 11, carried out CPR, but his father could not be revived.
Area coroner Victoria Davies gave the cause of death as Sudden Arrhythmic Death Syndrome (SADS) and concluded it was down to natural causes.
She said SADS – of which there are around 500 cases each year in the UK – predominantly struck young males.
The inquest took place exactly four weeks after Alex’s funeral at St Peter’s Church in Prestbury, Cheshire. As well as his wife, his sons, and his parents, it was attended by former United manager Sir Alex Ferguson and ex-players including Bryan Robson and Ryan Giggs.
Upon his death, his father – a former manager of Manchester City and Wales – released a statement via the League Managers Association (LMA) on behalf of both parents.
“Jill and I are totally heartbroken by the sudden and unexpected loss of our beloved son, Alex,” the 62-year-old said.
“Alex was a wonderful son, brother to Curtis and Xenna, devoted husband and father to Jessica and their two beautiful children, Sebastian and Leonardo.
“Alex was player recruitment lead at Grimsby Town FC and had many good friends and colleagues. He will be so deeply missed by us all. We ask for privacy during this sad time as we come to terms with our family’s loss.”
The LMA sent its deepest condolences “to all of Alex’s family and friends”.
Alex was born when his father was at Barcelona in Spain, and had a brief playing career in Wales before moving into a number of administration roles.
He worked as a performance analyst at Blackburn and recruitment analyst at City before moving to another of his father’s former clubs, Fulham, as head of analysis.
A Fifa-registered agent, Alex spent three years in Portugal as academy manager at VSI Rio Maior and more recently worked as director of football at AFC Fylde and head of scouting at Morecambe, before joining Grimsby last summer.
Alex’s father, Mark, 62, won two Premier League titles, three FA Cups, a League Cup and European Cup Winners’ Cup with United and enjoyed a long managerial career.
He left Carlisle United in May after missing out on promotion to the English Football League following defeat in the play-off semi finals.
2026-08-05T14:35:43Z