Eric Roy, the manager of Stade Brestois and a former midfielder for Sunderland, dies at 58 following a prolonged illness. BBC Football reports that Roy has died after a three-and-a-half year fight with pancreatic cancer. Other outlets say he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2023, with The42 describing the diagnosis timeline and Legit.ng also citing the same condition and age at death.
All three sources identify Roy as both a former Sunderland player and the coach of Brest, and they report that tributes follow his passing across French football. While the outlets vary slightly in how they describe the length of his illness—BBC Football using the “three-and-a-half year” figure and others referencing the 2023 diagnosis—they broadly agree on the key details: his age, his roles at Sunderland and Brest, the cancer type, and that he has died after battling the disease. The reports do not add further specifics on the circumstances of his death beyond his illness.
