Christian Eriksen and VfL Wolfsburg have agreed to terminate the midfielder’s contract by mutual consent, the German club announced on Wednesday. The decision brings an early end to a deal that had been due to run until June 2027.
The 34-year-old Denmark international has been recuperating in his homeland after collapsing during a Denmark friendly against Ukraine in June. He said the following month that he would return to Denmark to undergo a rehabilitation programme.
Eriksen described the June incident as a different situation from the cardiac arrest he suffered during Denmark’s opening Euros group match against Finland in Copenhagen in 2021. After that earlier collapse he was fitted with an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) device, and he said in June that it “did what it was designed to do” when he went down on the pitch for a second time. “Receiving a shock from my ICD has had a major impact on both me and my family,” he posted on social media, adding that he was feeling good, that his recovery had already started and that he was grateful to the doctors who had cared for him and his heart over the years.
Eriksen joined Wolfsburg as a free agent a year ago and made 34 appearances across all competitions, scoring three goals and providing 10 assists. He could not prevent the club’s relegation from the Bundesliga, and his last outing for the side came in May’s promotion/relegation playoff defeat to Paderborn. Wolfsburg’s managing director of sport, Dieter Hecking, said the second-tier club had granted Eriksen’s request to cancel the agreement.
“At the moment, it is important for me to be close to my family in Denmark. I’m pleased that we were able to find a solution together,” Eriksen said in a statement. “My time in Wolfsburg was marked by many highs and lows. I know that the club is now in good hands as it aims to make its way back to the Bundesliga, and I am convinced that a successful future lies ahead for VfL.”
Hecking paid tribute to the midfielder, saying Eriksen had already “experienced and achieved a great deal” during an “extraordinary career”. “Despite his short time here, he has left a lasting impression on his teammates, our staff and the fans,” he added.
Before his 2021 collapse, Eriksen played for Ajax, Tottenham and Internazionale. He was fitted with the ICD device but had to leave Inter because Serie A rules prohibit playing with a pacemaker. He joined Brentford in 2022 and then spent three years at Manchester United before moving to Wolfsburg last summer.