Granit Xhaka Excluded from Switzerland Squad Amid Vaccination Controversy
Granit Xhaka will sit out Switzerland’s latest national team camp as the fallout from his public comments on vaccination spills into the international window.
The Swiss Football Association confirmed the decision on Monday, revealing that, after talks with the player, Xhaka will not join the squad in Belek, Turkey, where Murat Yakin’s side are gathering this week.
“Following his personal statement regarding his vaccination status, Granit Xhaka will not participate in the men’s national team’s upcoming gathering,” the federation said.
Swiss FA president Peter Knabel backed the midfielder’s choice to step aside while the situation is clarified.
“We welcome the fact that Granit is taking this step and is prepared to fully clarify the situation,” Knabel said. “At the same time, we mutually concluded that it was in the team’s best interest to proceed with this gathering without him.”
The message from the FA is clear: take the heat out of the debate, protect the group, and get back to football.
“Our priority now is to calm the situation and focus entirely on the team and the upcoming Uefa Nations League fixtures,” Knabel added.
Nations League Demands Full Focus
There is little margin for distraction. Switzerland open their Nations League campaign away to North Macedonia on Saturday, a tricky assignment to start a dense autumn schedule. They then head to Scotland on September 29, another test in a group that offers few easy nights.
The calendar tightens in October. The Swiss host Slovenia and North Macedonia in Lucerne on October 3 and 6, fixtures that could shape the entire campaign. By then, the question of Xhaka’s role will be looming again.
“At the end of this international window we will reassess the situation with Granit and discuss the next steps,” Knabel said, leaving the door open but making no promises.
Switzerland are also due to face Slovenia on November 13 and Scotland on November 16, again in the Nations League. By that stage, the issue will either be resolved—or it will hang over a team chasing results in a competition that increasingly defines a nation’s standing in Europe.
