Cody Gakpo's wife shares grief after baby son Elijah dies during pregnancy

Noa van der Bij, the wife of Liverpool and Netherlands winger Cody Gakpo, has opened up about the loss of the couple’s unborn son after announcing the tragedy on social media last week. In an emotional post accompanied by a photograph of herself and Gakpo holding hands over a blanket and a small knitted hat, she wrote: “With broken hearts, we share the devastating news that our baby boy passed away during pregnancy.”

The couple named their son Elijah Raphael Gakpo. Van der Bij’s post concluded: “Thank you for your love and support. Elijah Raphael Gakpo. Forever loved. Forever our son.”

In a subsequent post, Van der Bij described visiting a local church with the family to light a candle in Elijah’s memory. Afterwards, she took the couple’s young son Samuel to a nearby children’s playground. “There was only one other child there,” she wrote. “His name was Elijah.”

The encounter brought her profound comfort. “There could not have been a more beautiful sign from God,” she wrote. “He reminded us that our little boy is never far away.”

Following his wife’s initial announcement, Gakpo released a brief statement of his own, asking the public and media to respect the family’s privacy as they grieve.

The tragedy unfolded while Gakpo was representing the Netherlands at the FIFA World Cup 2026. Despite the loss, the forward is expected to remain with the Dutch squad ahead of their round of 32 fixture against Morocco.