Christian Eriksen's Heart Condition Explained: What Happened to the Denmark Midfielder?
During the friendly match between Denmark and Ukraine today at Nature Energy Park in Odense, Denmark, Christian Eriksen collapsed in the 65th minute after holding onto his chest.
Paramedics immediately stormed the pitch to treat the Danish midfielder, and the match was called off. Fortunately, the Danish FA published a statement that Eriksen was conscious and feeling well shortly after.
Danish FA wrote, "Christian Eriksen is conscious and feeling well according to the circumstances. The match has been called off."
Denmark national team doctor Morten Boesen made a statement about the incident and gave good news regarding Eriksen's recovery.
Boesen said, "Christian is doing well and walked off the pitch by 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."
This is Eriksen's second time collapsing on a pitch after suffering a sudden cardiac arrest during a EURO 2021 match between Denmark and Finland on June 12, 2021.
Christian Eriksen's Heart Condition Explained
After Christian Eriksen suffered a cardiac arrest in the 2021 EUROS, the Danish midfielder was given an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD), which is a small device that regulates abnormal heart rhythms.
When Boesen spoke about the incident that happened today, the Danish national team doctor explained that the ICD did its job to help Eriksen recover quickly.
The BBC reported that after the cardiac arrest in 2021, Eriksen underwent surgery to have the ICD fitted a few days later. BBC reported, "The device sits under the skin in his chest, continuously tracking his heart's rhythm. If it detects a life-threatening, dangerously fast arrhythmia, it immediately shocks the heart out of the irregularity."
Eriksen walked to the ambulance on his own and was fully conscious after collapsing today.
Multiple fans, players, and football clubs have shown support for Eriksen and are wishing the player a full recovery. It is not clear whether Eriksen will release an official statement on the incident.
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This story was originally published June 7, 2026 at 1:01 PM.