The Danish Football Association (DBU) has confirmed that Christian Eriksen is “conscious and doing well” after collapsing during a friendly match against Ukraine on Sunday evening. The 34-year-old midfielder, who previously suffered a cardiac arrest at the European Championship in 2021, fell to the ground late in the match at Nature Energy Park in Odense.
Incident and Immediate Response
Footage showed Eriksen clutching his chest before collapsing in front of the substitutes' bench. Medical staff attended to him immediately, with players from both teams forming a protective circle, similar to the scene during Euro 2020. The match was abandoned with 25 minutes remaining. A DBU statement read: “Christian Eriksen is conscious and, according to the circumstances, doing well. The match is called off.”
Medical Details
Denmark’s team doctor, Morten Boesen, provided further details: “Christian is doing well and walked off the field himself. As I see it, the pacemaker responded as it should. He was briefly unconscious, but regained consciousness very quickly and we were quickly in contact with him. He will now undergo further examinations at the hospital to determine what caused the incident. We are in ongoing contact with him and the doctors at the hospital. But Christian is doing well, and he asked me to send his regards to all the players and tell them that he was okay.”
Background
Eriksen had an Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator (ICD) fitted after his cardiac arrest at Euro 2020. He resumed his playing career eight months later, signing with Brentford in 2022, then moving to Manchester United, and most recently joining German club Wolfsburg last summer. The former Tottenham and Inter Milan star received 13 minutes of on-pitch treatment during the 2021 incident, where he was resuscitated and defibrillated.
