USA India Australia Africa
Home Celebrities NFL Legend Mike Ditka Dead At 86
NFL Legend Mike Ditka Dead At 86

October 9, 2026:

NFL Legend Mike Ditka Dead At 86

Mike Ditka
NFL Legend Dead At 86

Published
|
Updated

Mike Ditka — one of the most legendary figures in NFL history — is dead.

The Pro Football Hall of Famer’s family announced his death Friday, saying in a statement … “It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved husband, father, grandfather, and friend, Mike Ditka.”

The family continues … “While the world knew Mike as a Hall of Fame football player, legendary coach, and leader of the Chicago Bears’ Super Bowl XX championship team, we knew him as the heart of our family.”

1009-Mike-Ditka-Remembering-SUB-1

They add … “Mike will be missed beyond measure and remembered forever.”

The cause of death is unclear.

Ditka battled health issues throughout his life, notably suffering a stroke in 2012 and a major heart attack in 2018.

mike ditka Super Bowl XX getty 1

He was an absolute legend on the gridiron — he played tight end at a Hall of Fame level from 1961 to 1972, and then he went on to have a brilliant career as an NFL head coach.

Ditka famously led the 1985 Chicago Bears to a Super Bowl victory … and was later inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1988.

Off the field, Ditka was just as iconic as he was on it. He starred in commercials — including a line of ads for the Viagra-like drug Levitra, and he was famously praised in a recurring “Saturday Night Live” sketch.

In the bit, George Wendt, Chris Farley, Mike Myers and Robert Smigel sat at a bar table and spoke fondly of the coach and “Da Bears.” Mike even appeared in the sketch at one point.

Ditka had four kids — three sons and one daughter.

He was 86.

RIP

Source link

tags
Abkhazia Afghanistan Africa Albania Algeria Andorra Angola Antigua and Barbuda Argentina Armenia Australia Austria Azerbaijan Bahamas Bahrain Bangladesh Barbados Belarus Belgium Belize Benin Bhutan Bolivia Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana Brazil Brunei Bulgaria Burkina Faso Burundi Cambodia Cameroon Canada Cape Verde Central African Republic Chad Chile China Colombia Comoros Costa Rica Croatia Cuba Curacao Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark Djibouti Dominica Dominican Republic East Timor Ecuador Egypt El Salvador Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Estonia Eswatini Ethiopia Fiji Finland France French Polynesia Gabon Gambia Georgia Germany Ghana Greece Grenada Guam Guatemala Guinea Guinea-Bissau Guyana Haiti Honduras Hong Kong Hungary Iceland India Indonesia Iran Iraq Ireland Israel Italy Jamaica Japan Jordan Kazakhstan Kenya Kiribati Kosovo Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Laos Latvia Lebanon Lesotho Liberia Libya Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Macau Madagascar Malawi Malaysia Maldives Mali Malta Marshall Islands Mauritania Mauritius Mexico Micronesia Moldova Monaco Mongolia Montenegro Morocco Mozambique Myanmar Namibia Nauru Nepal Netherlands New Caledonia New Zealand Nicaragua Niger Nigeria North Korea North Macedonia Northern Cyprus Norway Oman Pakistan Palau Palestine Panama Papua New Guinea Paraguay Peru Philippines Poland Portugal Puerto Rico Qatar Republic of the Congo Romania Russia Rwanda Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Samoa San Marino Saudi Arabia Senegal Serbia Seychelles Sierra Leone Singapore Slovakia Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia South Korea South Sudan Spain Sri Lanka Sudan Suriname Sweden Switzerland Syria Taiwan Tajikistan Tanzania Thailand Togo Tonga Transnistria Trinidad and Tobago Tunisia Turkey Turkmenistan Tuvalu Uganda UK Ukraine United Arab Emirates Uruguay USA Uzbekistan Vanuatu Vatican City Venezuela Vietnam Western Sahara Yemen Zambia Zimbabwe