One year after collapsing on the field during a game, Racing Louisville midfielder Savannah DeMelo filed suit against University of Louisville Health and two doctors, accusing them of improper care for not diagnosing her with a heart condition, according to multiple media reports.
DeMelo posted to Instagram on Monday, “A year ago today, while playing soccer, I collapsed due to an undiagnosed cardiac arrhythmia, that caused me to go into cardiac arrest. I respect and appreciate the privacy everyone has met me with while going through everything I have this year.
“I’ll never be able to fully put into words how emotionally hard this year has been. There has been a lot of uncertainty and emotions intertwined with it all.”
It was the first time the 28-year-old U.S. women’s national team player confirmed the diagnosis of cardiac arrhythmia (an irregular heartbeat) and that she experienced a cardiac arrest.
The lawsuit reportedly maintains that Dr. Jennifer Daily and Dr. Sarabjeet Suri and the University of Louisville Health didn’t acknowledge and treat her heart condition, though she was under their care after experiencing telltale symptoms.
Six months before the on-field collapse, DeMelo was hospitalized following another game in which she didn’t feel right, and she said to ESPN at the time that her doctors told her it was hyperthyroidism.
DeMelo, who played for the USWNT in the 2023 Women’s World Cup, hasn’t been back on the field for Racing Louisville since the September 2025 collapse.
Multiple media outlets reported that the University of Louisville Health wouldn’t comment on the suit, in which DeMelo is seeking compensation for care-related costs and income lost, citing “permanent impairment in her power to labor and earn money.”
Racing Louisville made DeMelo the fourth overall pick in the 2022 NWSL draft, and she appeared in 79 games for the team over four seasons, producing 17 goals and eight assists.
–Field Level Media
