The Euro Cup has only just begun and it has not missed a beat when it comes to entertaining the world. On Saturday’s Finland vs Denmark game 29-year-old Danish midfielder Christian Eriksen collapsed mid-game, causing one of the most heartbreaking sporting events to date. 

We are only 2 days into a month-long event for the Euro Cup, and although Italy won their first game on Friday, nothing compares to the heartbreaking moment on the pitch Saturday. Erikson is only 29 and considering his profession many would question the reason for his collapse.

In the first half of the game, Eriksen was thrown the ball and happened to collapse before receiving it, it wasn’t until players around him stopped the game themselves and immediately called for medical help from the sidelines.

As cameras were on him, in the first few seconds of his collapse his eye appeared to be open but he was immobile lying on his side. Many of his teammates and others from Finland ran to help out and see what the situation entailed.

As medics and team doctors ran to Eriksen, they started making their checks. The first thing any medical professional knows to do is check the ABC’s (Airways, Breathing, Circulation.) As the team doctor arrived he assessed Eriksen “He was breathing, and I could feel his pulse. But suddenly that changed,” stated Morten Boesen.

The team’s captain Simon Kjær, was one of the first to reach Eriksen and knew to do his checks, in which he noticed his pulse fading and started giving chest compressions aka CPR. As the scene became alarming he guided his team to form a circle around Eriksen and the medics for privacy.

For around 10 minutes medics worked to stabilize Eriksen and the loud cheers turned silent, and eventually loud again as the fans chanted Christian name to show their support, no matter what team they came to watch today.

As this has become of the scariest 10 minutes in not only European football history but sports history, two teams have come together to help out a fellow footballer, and only care about his well being.

As Eriksen was still being checked by medics Kjær went to the sidelines to console Eriksen’s wife Sabrina, who alongside 16,000 was horrified about the situation. Eriksen was eventually stable enough to be removed from the pitch and transfer to the hospital, from photos it was clear that Eriksen was awake and responsive.

Later the daily news reported that he was stable, and will be undergoing further checks. The initial game for Denmark and Finland had been stopped completely until both teams agreed to continue the game 90 minutes later. Many fans, former teammates, and even member of the Finnish team expressed their well wishes. The score finishing with Finland 1- Denmark 0.