Sunderland midfielder and Switzerland captain Granit Xhaka has received a suspended fine worth 150,000 Swiss francs (£136,000) after obtaining a forged Covid-19 vaccination certificate.
The 34-year-old said the punishment consists of 50 daily financial penalties of CHF3,000 each. The sanction has been suspended for two years, meaning Xhaka will not have to pay the fine provided he commits no further offences during that period. He has already covered the associated court costs.
The case relates to a vaccination certificate Xhaka is alleged to have obtained in 2022, when Covid documentation was still being used for certain forms of international travel from Switzerland.
Xhaka has accepted the ruling and acknowledged responsibility for his decision. He had previously addressed the matter publicly in September, explaining that concerns and uncertainty surrounding Covid vaccination had influenced his actions at the time.
The midfielder was playing for Arsenal when the incident occurred.
Switzerland never imposed a blanket legal requirement for everyone to possess a Covid certificate. However, the documents were required to access certain venues and activities and were also used for international travel, restricting participation for people without valid certification.
Most domestic Covid certificate measures were removed in Switzerland during spring 2022. Certificates continued to be issued afterwards, largely for people needing proof of vaccination or recovery to satisfy entry requirements in other countries.
Xhaka, Switzerland’s record appearance holder with 152 caps, recently withdrew from the national squad following his initial public statement about the case. He missed Nations League fixtures against Scotland, North Macedonia and Slovenia during the latest international break.
Earlier this year, he captained Switzerland at the World Cup, where the team reached the quarter-finals before being eliminated by eventual runners-up Argentina.
Xhaka is now expected to return to club duty when Sunderland host Brighton on Saturday at 15:00 BST.
Sunderland head coach Regis Le Bris declined to discuss the legal matter but indicated that Xhaka had trained strongly during the international break and remains in good condition from a football perspective.