Switzerland's second striker dropped over fake Covid certificate
Second Switzerland star Breel Embolo has been removed from the Swiss national team after reports he obtained a fake Covid vaccination certificate. A Swiss report confirmed that the Basel public prosecutor’s office convicted him in 2025 of multiple counts of incitement to forgery, sentencing him to 20 daily fines of 3,000 Swiss francs each, suspended on probation.
Legal conviction and penalty
The conviction stemmed from Embolo’s alleged procurement of a falsified vaccination document. The Basel court recorded several counts of incitement to forgery, a charge that carries a maximum prison term of five years. The ruling was handed down in 2025, confirming the seriousness of the offence.
The court imposed 20 daily fines of 3,000 Swiss francs each, roughly £2,700, but suspended the payment on probation. This penalty mirrors the one handed to Granit Xhaka, who faces an identical sanction for a comparable breach. Both players now confront the prospect of further legal action.
Impact on Nations League campaign
The Swiss Football Association released a statement confirming Embolo’s exclusion. It noted that Embolo informed the association about the matter that became public today, prompting management to keep him out of the training camp. Pierluigi Tami, Director of National Teams, personally delivered the decision to the striker.
Switzerland’s first 2026/27 UEFA Nations League fixture is scheduled for tomorrow evening in Skopje against North Macedonia. Embolo had been slated to join the squad in Glasgow for the subsequent clash with Scotland and later matches in Lucerne versus Slovenia and North Macedonia. His absence, alongside Granit Xhaka, leaves the team without its two leading forwards for the entire international break.
Granit Xhaka, the Sunderland captain, admitted on social media that he obtained a fake Covid certificate while grappling with vaccine doubts. He wrote, “I felt deep distrust of the vaccine… it was a mistake. I am sorry and I am fully cooperating with the authorities.” A Getty image later captured Xhaka looking devastated after the revelation.
Swiss prosecutors plan to question Xhaka within the coming month as part of a broader investigation into a former Swiss doctor accused of issuing falsified certificates in 2023. Embolo is expected to face the same line of questioning. Should charges be pressed, both players could face up to five years’ imprisonment for forgery.