Old Forged Test Certificates Cost Breel Embolo His Place in the Swiss Squad

Breel Embolo's COVID-19 test certificates from 2021 were forged. That wasn't news; it had been known for a while. What changed this week was fresh reporting in the Swiss media, and on Friday the national federation said the Atlanta United forward won't join the team in Scotland.

The federation's stated reason was keeping the squad focused on the games. The same day, the outlet Switzerland Today published details of a fine Embolo received last year over the documents.

He's the second player to go. Last weekend, captain Granit Xhaka, the most-capped player in Swiss history with 152 appearances, agreed to step away because he's implicated in an investigation into a doctor who issued fake vaccination certificates. Xhaka has admitted getting a forged document in 2022 and said he made mistakes.

Embolo's strange year

Embolo, 29, wasn't going to play in Saturday's Nations League opener in North Macedonia anyway. He was suspended for a red card against Argentina in the World Cup quarterfinals, a card soccer's rules body, IFAB, later admitted was a mistake that broke video review protocol.

That World Cup had started with a visa problem that got him to the U.S. days after his teammates. He still scored in the 1-1 opener against Qatar and again in the round-of-32 win over Algeria. Switzerland goes to Scotland on Tuesday, then hosts Slovenia and North Macedonia in Lucerne.