Swiss midfielder and Sunderland star Granit Xhaka has come under fire from the Swiss authorities after he admitted to forging COVID-19 vaccination certificates.
Already dropped from Switzerland's squad for the upcoming Nations League games, Xhaka will now face a legal case opened by the Lucerne public prosecutor’s office, with questioning to take place next month, as per a report from Swiss outlet Blick.
Though the Swiss team captain remains innocent until proven guilty, if found guilty, he could also be looking at a prison sentence of up to five years.
Though he earlier told the newspaper NZZ that the legal issue over the alleged forgery did not "at all" concern him, and that he had "seen worse", he later apologised on Instagram for what he described as a "mistake" that he had made in "a state of emotional turmoil".
The case dates back to 2022, during his time at Arsenal. He explained that at the time, he had “felt a deep mistrust of the vaccine” and was “personally very unsettled”, which led to his decision to allegedly forge the COVID-19 certificates.
However, at the time, customs authorities in many nations had required proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test to enter during 2022. In the UK, these rules were phased out in early 2022.
It had been in 2023 that he left Arsenal to join the Bundesliga club Bayer Leverkusen, after which he returned to the Premier League team Sunderland in 2025.
“We welcome Granit taking this step and facing the consequences. At the same time, we jointly concluded that it is in the team’s best interest to complete this training camp without him. Our priority now is to calm the situation and focus entirely on the team and the upcoming challenges in the UEFA Nations League," said Swiss FA (AFV) president Peter Knabel, reacting to the developments.
It is yet to be seen how the legal proceedings affect the career of the 33-year-old star, who is one of Europe's most recognisable players and the most-capped player from his nation.
