Covid-19
Denmark's midfielder Christian Eriksen stands on the pitch during the UEFA EURO 2020 Group B football match between Denmark and Finland at the Parken Stadium in Copenhagen on June 12, 2021. (Photo by HANNAH MCKAY / POOL / AFP) ( Hannah McKay / Pool / AFP)

Footballer Christian Eriksen did not collapse because of a Covid-19 vaccine

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Social media posts shared around the world claim that Danish footballer Christian Eriksen collapsed mid-match due to a Covid-19 vaccine. The claim is false: the director of Eriksen’s club Inter Milan and the Danish Football Association said the player has not been vaccinated. The cause of his collapse is not known, as of June 16, 2021.

“Christian Eriksen, a perfectly fit soccer player who plays for one of the top soccer teams in the world and has the best medical attention, collapsed on the field today due to heart failure. Thanks God they were able to bring him back to life. He was given Pfizer a few days ago,” reads the tweet posted on June 12, 2021.

A screenshot of the tweet as of Jun 16, 2021.

It came after Eriksen, who plays for the Danish national football team and Inter Milan, collapsed on the pitch during Denmark’s Euro 2020 match against Finland on June 12, 2021.

The 29-year-old midfielder suddenly fell to the turf in the 43rd minute, laying motionless as medical personnel administered CPR. He laid on the field for about 15 minutes before being carried off the pitch and rushed to the hospital.

Social media users around the world shared similar posts claiming that Erikson collapsed because of a Covid-19 jab, including in Canada, France, Thailand and the United States. 

The global race to vaccinate populations against Covid-19 has been hit by a deluge of misinformation, especially about side effects of the shots, that has contributed to sluggish uptakes in various countries. 

However, Eriksen had not received a Covid-19 vaccine when he collapsed.

A spokesperson for the Danish football association, Dansk Boldspil-Union, told AFP on June 14, 2021 that Eriksen was not vaccinated while with the national team.

"The [Danish Football Association] has not had the players vaccinated. If they are vaccinated it is through their club,” the spokesperson said. 

The association said in a tweet on June 13 that the player was in a “stable” condition.

Inter Milan’s director, Giuseppe Marotta, said that Erikson “never had Covid and he has never been vaccinated,” as per this AFP report. 

Marotta repeated this in an interview with Italian radio Rai Sport I (at 5:50 in this video).

The club’s doctor Piero Volpi told Italian media that the player would “undergo in-depth examinations” to establish the cause of his collapse.

“The most important thing is that he’s alright, but there was never the slightest indication of any problem whatsoever, neither when he was at Tottenham nor at Inter. In Italy, the checks are very strict,” Volpi told Gazzetta dello Sport.  

“He’ll undergo in-depth examinations over the next few days,” he added.

Eriksen wrote in an Instagram post on June 15, 2021 that he was “fine - under the circumstances.”

“I still have to go through some examinations at the hospital, but I feel okay. Now, I will cheer on the boys on the Denmark team in the next matches,” he said.

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