Under-21 international ends career at age 22 for religious reasons
Silvan Wallner was Swiss champion in 2022 and says he cannot reconcile religious faith with football
Central defender Silvan Wallner, just 22 years old and a Swiss youth international, has decided to end his professional football career. All because, he explains, he cannot reconcile his Catholic devotion with playing the sport. Wallner was crowned Swiss champion in 2022 with Zurich and, at the beginning of this season, he transferred to Austrian side Blau Weiss Linz, a club for which he ended up making just five appearances.
“I am a devout Christian and I read the Bible. I want to follow Jesus Christ and the day of rest, according to the Bible, is Saturday, which is very important to me. As a professional, this means that I cannot play football on Saturdays in order to work,” he explained in a statement shared by the Austrian club.
“We were very surprised by the way Silvan made this decision, something I certainly did not expect from such a young player. If he no longer wants to play football on Saturdays and thinks this is the right way to do it, we have to accept it, everyone has their limits,” lamented Blau Weiss Linz sporting director Milos Malenovic.
