An incident at a Salt Lake-area youth soccer game that resulted in a yellow card now has much more dire consequences a week later. A soccer referee who had presided over the game is now dead after being assaulted by one of the players.

The referee, Ricardo Portillo, had just called a penalty on one of the team's goalies after the goalie allegedly pushed an opposing player during a corner kick. Portillo, 46, gave the goalie a yellow card, a move that incensed the player.

After play had stopped and Portillo was writing down his penalty judgement, the player allegedly blindsided the referee with a punch to the face.

"The suspect was close to Portillo and punched him once in the face as a result of the call. It was initially believed that Portillo had minor injuries as a result of the assault," according to a Greater Salt Lake police release. "However, he was transported by ambulance to Intermountain Medical Center and was found to have serious internal head injuries. He was listed in critical condition."

From there, Portillo entered into a week long coma that continued to see massive amounts of brain swelling and hemhorraging. This past Saturday, he ended up passing away due to the injuries he sustained during the soccer game. 

This was not Portillo's first time getting into altercations with players, and violence around the soccer fields had escalated so much lately that his own children were begging him to stop refereeing games.

"Five years ago, a player upset with a call broke his ribs," the AP reported Friday. "A few years before that, a player broke his leg, she said. Other referees have been hurt, too."

The child, a 17-year-old, is still unnamed and is currently in a juvenile detention center. Though there has been no official word yet as to how he will be charged, it was originally believed that he would receive aggravated assault charges with harsher penalties depending on Portillo's condition.

"We will miss him at the soccer fields. He loved the game and loved doing his job. Ricardo always had a great sense of humor and loved being in the service of others," Liga Continental de Fútbol president Mario Vazquez said. "Our thoughts and prayers are with the Portillo family during this difficult time. Ricardo will always be with us."