Christian Eriksen: Denmark friendly with Ukraine abandoned after midfielder collapses on pitch

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 in the Danish city of Odense 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 OK."

Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, the Denmark captain, was on the field at the time of Eriksen's collapse on Sunday. He told TV2: "There's a throw-in. I go out to the side and I turn around a bit, and I see Christian ​on his way to the floor. We know a little about how he reacts, what ⁠that means.

"(Everyone) reacted ⁠super-fast and with respect. I can only compliment how much courage those who took care of Christian on the field had.

"I can't say much more than you get a shock. The most important thing is that Christian is doing well."

The Denmark and Ukraine players quickly formed a ring around Eriksen while he ‌was attended to by medics.

Once the game was called off, the players and coaching staff from the two teams stood arm in arm in a ring as Denmark coach Brian Riemer thanked them.

"The most important thing is that Christian ⁠is doing well and he is. He has left the field ​and he has sent his regards to the players," Riemer said.

"Now it's about us standing together, as you ​could see that we did in the most dignified way on the field. So it's about standing together now and of course ensuring that everyone has a shoulder to lean on ‌from here."

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.

(c) Sky Sports 2026: Christian Eriksen: Denmark friendly with Ukraine abandoned after midfielder collapses on pitch