Granit Xhaka has been convicted of obtaining a fraudulent COVID-19 vaccination certificate; however, the ruling against the Sunderland captain does not involve a two-year ban from football, despite circulating headlines suggesting otherwise.
The actual penalty consists of a suspended fine of 150,000 Swiss francs alongside a two-year probation period—a crucial legal distinction between a suspended financial penalty and an athletic suspension.
The fine is structured as 50 daily penalty units of 3,000 Swiss francs each. Xhaka will not be required to pay the sum provided he commits no further offenses during the probation period, while he confirmed that he has already covered the associated court costs.
“I accept the decision and take responsibility for my actions,” Xhaka stated in a release, explaining that he cooperated fully with investigating authorities from the outset of the case.
The incident dates back to 2022, when Xhaka acquired the forged certificate during a period in which he admitted to harboring deep mistrust toward COVID-19 vaccines, before subsequently acknowledging his mistake.
The fallout extended to his international career, as the Swiss Football Association excluded him from the national team’s recent camp, forcing him to miss four UEFA Nations League fixtures against North Macedonia, Scotland, and Slovenia.
The 34-year-old holds the captain’s armband at Sunderland following a distinguished career featuring spells at Arsenal, Bayer Leverkusen, and the Switzerland national team. Crucially, the current sentence does not prevent him from representing his club.
Consequently, the “two-year” period represents a legal probation term during which the fine may be activated in the event of a new infraction, rather than a ban prohibiting him from playing or training until 2028.
