Premier League funding defibrillators to grassroots football following Christian Eriksen incident

In the wake of Danish midfielder Christian Eriksen suffering cardiac arrest and nearly losing his life at the UEFA European Championship, the English Premier League is taking steps to prevent similar tragedies from occurring at the sport's lower levels. 

The Premier League announced Friday it's funding Automated External Defibrillators (ADE) for over 2,000 sites at grassroots clubs and facilities. The first 1,000 units are set to arrive before the start of the 2021-22 seasons, with the second group scheduled for some time in September.

Eriksen was resuscitated via CPR and a defibrillator during Denmark's Euro 2020 opener versus Finland earlier this month. He is now out of the hospital and visited teammates ahead of the Danes qualifying for the tournament's Round of 16. 

"The traumatic incident we all witnessed when Christian Eriksen collapsed during UEFA Euro 2020 brings into sharp focus the need for defibrillators to be more widely available across the football community," Premier League chief executive Richard Masters said in the prepared statement. 

"The welfare of participants and all those involved in football is a priority and this fund will support many people using football facilities not just with the provision of devices but also the training required to use the equipment.

"Sadly, a sudden cardiac incident could happen anytime, anywhere and we hope by enabling more facilities to have a device, it will make the difference in saving someone’s life."

It's widely believed Eriksen may not have survived had a defibrillator not been immediately available. He underwent successful surgery to have a defibrillator implanted before leaving the hospital.