Cody Gakpo and Noa van der Bij share news of their baby’s death during pregnancy

A loss shared publicly

Noa van der Bij has announced that her and Liverpool forward Cody Gakpo’s baby boy died during pregnancy. The news came less than a month after the couple said they were expecting their second child. There’s little to add to their loss; the details they chose to share make clear how deeply they’re grieving. Their announcement asks for understanding and support, while keeping the focus on the child they’d hoped to welcome.

The family’s announcement

Gakpo and van der Bij have a son, Samuël Seth, born in 2018. Their announcement on May 30 had suggested their family would soon grow to four. In a joint post, they wrote: “Our little family is growing. We can’t wait to meet you.” Gakpo That message now sits alongside the later news, a sharp change in what the family had expected for the coming months.

On June 27, van der Bij shared the devastating update. “With broken hearts., we share the devastating news that our baby boy passed away during pregnancy. Thank you for your love and support. Elijah Raphael Gakpo. Forever Loved. Forever our son.” Naming Elijah Raphael gives the announcement a personal specificity that matters: the post presents him as a son and a member of the family, not simply as the subject of a loss. The couple haven’t shared further details, and their statement doesn’t invite speculation about the circumstances.

A moment of comfort

Van der Bij also described going to church to light a candle, then walking with their son to the church playground. There was just one other child there, she wrote. His name was Elijah. The detail is small, but it gives the post a glimpse of how the family is trying to hold grief alongside ordinary routines: a visit to church, a walk with their son, and an encounter that took on meaning for them.

“There could not have been a more beautiful sign from god,” she said. “He reminded us that our little boy is never far away.” That’s a statement of personal faith and consolation, offered on the family’s own terms. Readers don’t need to interpret it beyond that. The moment’s importance comes from what it meant to van der Bij and her family.

Public attention and private grief

Cody Gakpo’s life away from football is part of the picture too: his long-time girlfriend, Noa van der Bij, works for a modelling agency and often posts personal updates on social media. The couple’s willingness to share selected moments has given followers a window into their family life, but it doesn’t make every detail public. This is more significant than a routine personal update: it concerns a family’s grief, and the family has set the limits of what it wishes to say.

Football in the background

On the pitch, Gakpo has become a regular starter at Liverpool since joining from PSV Eindhoven in January 2023 for around £40 million. He is currently representing the Netherlands at the World Cup. His club role and international appearances help explain why interest in his personal life extends beyond the usual transfer and match coverage. Here's the thing: visibility can bring attention to a family’s words, but it also makes restraint from readers and publishers more important.

If you're following Gakpo for his football, the news puts his public career in a different context without changing what the couple have chosen to share. Professional prominence and private loss can exist at the same time. A family grieving. That said, the most respectful reading is also the simplest: the couple have announced their son’s death, thanked people for their support, and shared one moment that brought them comfort.