THE BBC has received 6,417 complaints after it continued broadcasting as Denmark star Christian Eriksen received emergency treatment during Euro 2020.
The 29-year-old collapsed on the pitch during his country’s first group game against Finland, leaving teammates and fans in tears.
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Cameras showed medics desperately trying to stabilise the Inter Milan midfielder as his fellow countrymen formed a protective circle around him.
The BBC said viewers had complained about its coverage showing “intrusive footage of player receiving medical treatment”.
One viewer described the move as “unacceptable” while another said the BBC had “traumatised an entire nation”.
Another tweeted: “I’m not sure why they didn’t stop the cameras & go straight to the studio as soon as they saw he was getting CPR.
“I feel physically sick having watched this in real time. God I hope he’ll pull through. Only 29.”
‘DISGUSTING’
While one commented: “BBC need to think harder about privacy issues and react better when something this horrendous happens live on TV.
“Unacceptable to broadcast wife crying and a man receiving CPR.”
Even Ian Wright weighed in, tweeting: “CUT TO THE STUDIO FFS!!!!”
As well as filming his medical treatment, footy fans blasted the BBC for showing Eriksen’s wife crying.
Sabrina Kvist Jensen was seen in tears while being consoled by Danish players after she rushed down to the pitch.
One viewer said they were “utterly disgusted” by the decision to show her on screen.
Another posted on Twitter: “It’s absolutely atrocious how the BBC kept filming after all that was happening, no respect at all.”
And one commented: “Camera man at bbc needs to give his head a wobble filming #Eriksen on the floor and his wife crying her eyes out.”
Three days after suffering the cardiac arrest, Eriksen posted a thumbs up picture from his hospital bed.
He thanked everyone for their support and wrote: “I’m fine – under the circumstances.
6,417 COMPLAINTS
“I still have to go through some examinations at the hospital, but I feel okay.”
Denmark’s players had visited him in hospital with team-mate Kasper Schmeichel saying it was “damn nice to see him smile”.
The 6,417 complaints are significantly less in comparison to other incidents the Beeb has been involved with.
For example, the BBC confirmed it received 109,741 complaints from the public over its coverage of the Duke of Edinburgh’s death.
The figure made the coverage of Philip’s death the most complained-about programme in the corporation’s history.
Shortly after the Eriksen incident, the broadcaster later apologised and said the footage was controlled by Uefa.
In a statement, it said: “We apologise to anyone who was upset by the images broadcast.
“In-stadium coverage is controlled by Uefa as the host broadcaster, and as soon as the match was suspended, we took our coverage off air as quickly as possible.”
