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‘I’m grateful because I’m alive’: Soccer player’s life saved by opponents after cardiac arrest
Updated: 5:13 PM EDT May 19, 2025
Nils Gulbranson, a 25-year-old soccer player, was saved by players on the other team after suffering a cardiac arrest during his weekly men’s league game on March 19 in Minnesota.”The last thing I remember is that the second half started,” Gulbranson said.Derek Eklund, one of Gulbranson’s opponents, described the situation: “One of our other teammates called my name to come back, and by that point you were laying on your back and not responding and clearly something was wrong. You weren’t recovering, and you started to turn purple and blue.” Eklund continued, “Then you developed a few agonal breaths, and I couldn’t feel a pulse, so we started CPR at that time.”Scott Hunter, who has known Eklund since college, said, “Derek and I went to college together, so we’ve known each other for a really long time.” He added, “Derek was taking point, and I’ll give breaths and from that standpoint, and then luckily someone brought in an AED.”Eklund explained the critical moments, saying, “So we did CPR for probably six minutes, seven minutes or so. At that point, you appeared to be breathing, so I stopped, and you had a pulse.” He added, “At that point, you stopped breathing again, and we lost your pulse, and we did have to use the defibrillator. Couple more minutes of CPR and then you started breathing again, and you started to get more color back into your face, and at that point, thankfully, you didn’t require any more help after that.”Gulbranson expressed his gratitude, saying, “You know, by the grace of God, you guys were there, and you came over and saved my life. Both of you did.”Hunter responded, “We were just glad to be a part of it.”Eklund reflected on the outcome, stating, “This is the most favorable outcome that could have happened, I mean, you’re here, you’re talking.”Gulbranson was diagnosed with Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Cardiomyopathy, a rare genetic heart condition. He now has a Subcutaneous Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator (S-ICD) installed to monitor his heart. “There’s the surgery spot. I have an S-ICD installed right there, with a little wire going up my sternum that’s monitoring me 24/7 if there’s irregular beats, or whatever, it would shock me back and prevent any of this from happening,” he said.Hunter said, “Like I said, you’re most welcome. I’d do it for you or anybody else. Just glad that I could be a part of it. You don’t need to thank me anymore.”Eklund added, “This is something that we’re both going to have to share forever, you know?”Gulbranson acknowledged the changes he might face, saying, “Is the rest of my life going to have to change? Probably a little bit, I’m not going to be able to do certain things, but I’m grateful because I’m alive. Right? I’m here.”
Nils Gulbranson, a 25-year-old soccer player, was saved by players on the other team after suffering a cardiac arrest during his weekly men’s league game on March 19 in Minnesota.
“The last thing I remember is that the second half started,” Gulbranson said.
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Derek Eklund, one of Gulbranson’s opponents, described the situation: “One of our other teammates called my name to come back, and by that point you were laying on your back and not responding and clearly something was wrong. You weren’t recovering, and you started to turn purple and blue.” Eklund continued, “Then you developed a few agonal breaths, and I couldn’t feel a pulse, so we started CPR at that time.”
Scott Hunter, who has known Eklund since college, said, “Derek and I went to college together, so we’ve known each other for a really long time.” He added, “Derek was taking point, and I’ll give breaths and from that standpoint, and then luckily someone brought in an AED.”
Eklund explained the critical moments, saying, “So we did CPR for probably six minutes, seven minutes or so. At that point, you appeared to be breathing, so I stopped, and you had a pulse.” He added, “At that point, you stopped breathing again, and we lost your pulse, and we did have to use the defibrillator. Couple more minutes of CPR and then you started breathing again, and you started to get more color back into your face, and at that point, thankfully, you didn’t require any more help after that.”
Gulbranson expressed his gratitude, saying, “You know, by the grace of God, you guys were there, and you came over and saved my life. Both of you did.”
Hunter responded, “We were just glad to be a part of it.”
Eklund reflected on the outcome, stating, “This is the most favorable outcome that could have happened, I mean, you’re here, you’re talking.”
Gulbranson was diagnosed with Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Cardiomyopathy, a rare genetic heart condition. He now has a Subcutaneous Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator (S-ICD) installed to monitor his heart. “There’s the surgery spot. I have an S-ICD installed right there, with a little wire going up my sternum that’s monitoring me 24/7 if there’s irregular beats, or whatever, it would shock me back and prevent any of this from happening,” he said.
Hunter said, “Like I said, you’re most welcome. I’d do it for you or anybody else. Just glad that I could be a part of it. You don’t need to thank me anymore.”
Eklund added, “This is something that we’re both going to have to share forever, you know?”
Gulbranson acknowledged the changes he might face, saying, “Is the rest of my life going to have to change? Probably a little bit, I’m not going to be able to do certain things, but I’m grateful because I’m alive. Right? I’m here.”
