Ulrika Jonsson Opens Up on Social Media Following Sven-Goran Eriksson’s Death
Ulrika Jonsson has made her first social media post since the news broke that her ex-partner, Sven-Goran Eriksson, has passed away at the age of 76. The former England football manager, who had a distinguished coaching career across eight different countries, delivered a poignant final message to his fans before his death. “I had a good life,” he reflected. “I think we are all scared of the day when we die, but life is about death as well.
You have to learn to accept it for what it is. Hopefully, in the end, people will say, yeah, he was a good man, but everyone will not say that.” He continued, “I hope you will remember me as a positive guy trying to do everything he could do. Don’t be sorry, smile. Thank you for everything, coaches, players, the crowds, it’s been fantastic. Take care of yourself and take care of your life. And live it. Bye.”
Despite the emotional nature of Eriksson’s passing, Ulrika chose not to address his death directly. Instead, she posted a tribute to her pet dog in honor of National Dog Day. Later, she shared another image of her dog sleeping in her bed, followed by a photo of her sourdough toast breakfast.
Eriksson, who was diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer earlier this year, had been romantically involved with Italian lawyer Nancy Dell’Olio for a decade before his high-profile affairs with Ulrika Jonsson and later his secretary, Faria Alam. These relationships became headline news while Eriksson was managing the England football team between 2001 and 2006, told Daily Mail.
Reflecting on his past, Eriksson admitted that the affairs were “stupid,” but he defended the importance of sex in life. “Sex is one of the good things in life for all of us,” he said in a recent interview. “She was not married. I was not married. Probably I was stupid, but I think I didn’t do anything criminal. I didn’t really disturb anyone.”
At the beginning of 2024, Eriksson revealed that he had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and had “at best” about a year left to live, following a collapse after a 5km run. “Whoever said ‘life is too short’ is right,” he remarked. “I had a good life, maybe too good. You have to pay for it.”
Earlier this year, Ulrika responded to the news of Eriksson’s cancer diagnosis with a pointed Instagram post. She shared a throwback photo of herself and captioned it, “Look at me being all young and all that. So. PSA. I don’t have anything to say about Sven. #nada. Not a decent person.”
The complex history between Ulrika and Sven was further complicated by a public spat with Nancy Dell’Olio following news of their affair. Sven eventually confessed to the affair in his 2013 memoir, where he detailed their meetings and his perspective on the relationship, stating, “I did not feel I had anything to apologize for.”