Raúl Jiménez Vega, father of Mexican striker Raúl Jiménez, died on March 12, 2026, in Tepeji del Río, Hidalgo — the same small city where his son's football story first began. He was 62.
No official cause of death was confirmed, but multiple reports indicate he had been fighting pancreatic cancer for over a year.
More than a proud father
Jiménez Vega wasn't a background figure. He was involved — closely, consistently — from youth football in Hidalgo all the way through his son's rise in European football. He served as a sounding board, a representative, and at times a public defender when critics came calling.
That last role showed up clearly during the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, when he pushed back against commentators questioning Raúl's place in the national team squad while the striker was working his way back from injury. It wasn't a polished PR statement. It was a father who thought his son was being treated unfairly and said so.
He kept a low social media presence, but he appeared in the press regularly throughout Raúl's career — someone who understood the industry well enough to navigate it, while clearly never letting it become more important than family.
The family behind the footballer
Jiménez Vega was married to Martha Rodríguez. Together they had four children: Raúl Alonso, Miranda, André, and Toño. By all accounts, he was present and hands-on — the kind of father who showed up, not just in the good moments.
Raúl Jiménez has spoken in the past about the role his family played in keeping him grounded, especially during the darkest stretch of his career — the fractured skull he suffered at Arsenal in November 2020, and the long road back that followed. His father was part of that support structure throughout.
The news has hit the Mexican football community hard. For Jiménez himself, this loss goes well beyond football. His father watched him go from Tepeji del Río to Club América to the biggest stadiums in Europe. He saw all of it.
