Man City star's ex-girlfriend dies in horror crash as daughter issues emotional tribute

Rafaela Del Bianchi was killed in a horror crash with tributes paid by her heartbroken daughter, 11, and ex-girlfriend Manchester City striker Kerolin Nicoli

Rafaela Del Bianchi was killed in a horror car crash

A women's football influencer who once dated Manchester City and Brazil striker Kerolin Nicoli has died after being thrown from her car when it overturned in a crash.

Rafaela Del Bianchi, 27, was killed in the accident which happened on the Lix da Cunha Highway in Campinas, in the state of Sao Paulo, Brazil, at around 5am on Friday, October 3.

According to the Sao Paulo Public Security Department, Rafaela was not wearing a seatbelt when the accident happened. She was driving with a friend, who was wearing a seatbelt and survived with minor injuries.

The vehicle was found overturned by the police, who confirmed Rafaela's death at the scene.

She had been returning from a nightclub in the city, where she had posted photos and videos hours earlier on Instagram.

Manchester City striker Kerolin Nicoli and her ex-girlfriend Rafaela Del Bianchi

Rafaela had more than 23,000 followers on social media, where she shared her gym routines and daily life with her 11-year-old daughter Julia.

In January 2025, she told her followers she had fulfilled her dream of buying a home for herself and her daughter.

Rafaela and Kerolin were together from 2022 to 2023 and often appeared together in TikTok lives and social media posts.

Following the crash, Kerolin paid tribute to her former partner online, writing that she would "love [Rafaela] forever" and promising to help care for her daughter.

Sharing videos of them together, she wrote: "Even though we know that one day life will end, we are never prepared to lose someone. Today heaven gained a piece of what I loved most on Earth.

"It hurts to know that I can't hug you anymore, but I feel you in every silence, in every good memory. Nothing will erase what we live. Our love doesn't end here — it's just moved places."

Tributes have been paid to Rafaela Del Bianchi

Rafaela's daughter Julia also posted a message to her mother on social media, writing that she would "try to be strong and make her proud". Sharing video clips of them together, she wrote: "I love you infinitely, you are eternal to me."

Police have opened an investigation into the cause of the accident.

Kerolin, who has scored 12 goals in 54 games for Brazil, was signed by Women's Super League club City in January this year.