Christian Eriksen: Denmark friendly with Ukraine abandoned after midfielder collapses on pitch
Christian Eriksen is 'doing well' after collapsing during Denmark's friendly against Ukraine; the 34-year-old collapsed in the 65th minute and was taken to hospital as the match was abandoned; Eriksen collapsed during the European Championships in 2021 after suffering a cardiac arrest
Sunday 7 June 2026 20:17, UK
Christian Eriksen is conscious after collapsing during Denmark's friendly against Ukraine.
Footage showed Eriksen grabbing his chest before collapsing in the 65th minute. The match was later abandoned.
"Christian Eriksen is conscious and is doing well under the circumstances," the federation said in a statement on X.
Denmark's national team doctor Morten Boesen, who was credited with saving Eriksen's life when he collapsed in 2021, provided a further update.
"Christian is doing well and walked off the pitch by himself," he added. "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 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 asked me to send his regards to all the players and tell them he was okay."
In 2021, Eriksen collapsed during a European Championship match in Copenhagen against Finland and was given life-saving CPR treatment after suffering a cardiac arrest.
He was later fitted with a special heart-starting device known as an Implantable Cardioverter-Defibrillator (ICD).
After his recovery, Eriksen was unable to play for Inter Milan, who he joined from Tottenham in 2020, due to rules in Italy prohibiting players from competing while fitted with an ICD. His contract was terminated in 2021.
Eriksen went on to return to English football in January 2022 with Brentford before joining Manchester United that summer.
He made 107 appearances for United and scored eight times, winning the Carabao Cup in 2023 and the FA Cup in 2024.
Eriksen left the club at the end of his contract in 2025 and currently plays for German side Wolfsburg.