Bartina Koeman, wife of former footballer and ex-coach of F.C. Barcelona Ronald Koeman (Zaandam, Netherlands, 63 years old), passed away this Tuesday, September 15, at the age of 65 due to breast cancer, according to the blaugrana legend’s announcement on his social media. “With deep sadness, but also with great pride and love, we say goodbye to my beautiful wife, our beloved mother and grandmother,” wrote the former Dutch national team coach on his Instagram account, where he has 846,000 followers. The post, in which he indicated the birth and death dates of his wife (January 30, 1961 – September 15, 2026), accumulated thousands of Likes within a few hours. Alongside the message, a black and white photo of the couple holding hands. Among the comments, there are also many messages of support from colleagues in the profession, including Jordi Cruyff, son of Johan Cruyff, who coached Koeman during his time at Barça.
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Bartina was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2010. After intensive treatment, her condition improved, but the disease returned in 2018. In Bartina’s last Instagram post, dated July 30, the businesswoman and the former footballer posed together, smiling widely on a boat during vacation. “The rest doesn’t matter in life,” said the description of the couple’s photo, which Koeman also shared with his followers.
Bartina and Ronald Koeman had been married for 40 years and had three children together: Ronald Jr. (37 years old) — who followed in his father’s sporting footsteps and is the goalkeeper for Telstar, in the Dutch Eredivisie —, Tim (35) and Debby (37). All three shared their father’s post on their respective social media.
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F.C. Barcelona was quick to express its deepest condolences and “all the affection of Barcelonism” to Ronald Koeman and his family for the loss of his wife, Bartina. The club did so through a statement shared on X, which has also accumulated thousands of reactions from supporters showing their support for the former coach.
From FC Barcelona we want to express our deepest condolences and all the affection of Barcelonism to Ronald Koeman and his family for the loss of his wife, Bartina Koeman. Rest in peace.
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— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona_es) September 16, 2026
The Netherlands national football team also expressed their condolences through a message posted on X: “With sadness, we have learned of the passing of Bartina Koeman, wife of our former national coach Ronald Koeman. We wish Ronald, his children and grandchildren, his family and loved ones much strength and resilience in this great loss.”
Married since December 1985, Bartina accompanied her husband through all his stages: at Ajax Amsterdam (1984-1986), at PSV Eindhoven (1987-1989), and when in 1989 they moved to Barcelona to be part of the famous Dream Team of the Catalan club, to which he would return years later as a coach. In fact, when Koeman was hired as Barça’s coach in the summer of 2020, Bartina said she was happy. “Everything fits, he has been a Barça player, assistant coach [in 1999, Louis van Gaal] and now head coach,” she said. In statements to Dutch television, she added: “We have a family history behind us, I lived there about nine years, although we will have to organize to see the grandchildren.” Currently, the Koemans have four grandchildren; the latest was born just a week ago, as announced by Ronald Jr. on his Instagram account.
Koeman, for his part, had words for his wife in the message with which he said goodbye to his tenure as coach of the Netherlands: “In recent years, I have also been reminded that there are things more important than football. Football has been my life, but health is priceless. When someone you love goes through a tough battle, your perspective changes. My wife Bartina has supported me every day, despite her own health difficulties, and encouraged me to finish my work as national coach. That speaks of incredible strength. I am more grateful to her for that than I can ever express in words,” he wrote on Instagram, where he has about 850,000 followers.
“It is true that my wife suffers from [metastatic] cancer and has her treatment every week. We can do it in Holland or Barcelona. It is important if it works. That is why being a coach is the best job I can have with these things in life, with my family,” Koeman confided months before the start of the Football World Cup in his second tenure leading the Dutch national team. “A career is not always positive. You find complicated moments and, as a family, we are strong enough to get through these problems. For me, being a coach is an escape because it lets you think about other things. Football is very important in my life and health is even more so. If health and my family work, it gives me freedom to do my things,” he added. A position he resigned from after the Netherlands’ defeat against Morocco — now held by another former Barça player and coach, Xavi Hernández.
