The pitched battle in the stands and on the playing field between fans of the Querétaro and Atlas football teams has brought to the Mexican fields the logic of a violence that is recurrent in Latin American stadiums. The cruelty shown by the images cannot be detached, on the other hand, from a fierce daily life that, at the hands of organized crime, has caused 100,000 fatalities in this country in the last three years alone. Despite a social drama like this, Mexico, which already hosted the 1970 and 1986 World Cups, is set to host the 2026 World Cup alongside the United States and Canada.
According to the governor of the region of Querétaro, Mauricio Kuri, what happened this Saturday at the facilities of La Corregidora left 26 injured, of which 19 have already been discharged. “Even though there are no deaths, we cannot say that it is not a tragedy and we cannot allow it to be politicized.” His words immediately aroused suspicion. “The problem is that we live in a country where the president (Andrés Manuel López Obrador) dismisses a murder with his hand on his waist despite the fact that there is a video with citizens being shot outside a house where they are being shot ; this is why the fans doubt the authorities, who say that there are no deaths despite the Dantesque scenes. I can’t be convinced that there are no fans killed just because a governor says so, “said Carlos Ponce de León, a columnist for the newspaper. Record.
Suspension of the championships
The League decided to temporarily suspend its official championships. The Federation “regrets and condemns the events that took place in Querétaro.” In turn, he promised to “monitor and assist in the investigation process with the appropriate authorities.” The press reported that Querétaro is being disaffiliated until the end of this event due to his main responsibility in the episodes that were recorded in La Corregidora 10 minutes into the second half, when local fans attacked with kicks. , blows and forceful elements the few supporters of the rival set, that won by a goal.
“We have canceled the services of the private security company GESK9, contracted by Club Querétaro; and we have suspended five civil servants. There will be no impunity, “Governor Kuri said. Part of the perplexity that these hours still cause these events has to do with police passivity and an even more disturbing fact: for now there are no uniformed officers or officials arrested. “They all failed … there is no doubt that in our country we are living our own wars and this has been as serious as the shooting of people in Michoacán,” said Ulises Gómez, of the Diary of Querétaro.
For the time being, a judicial investigation has been opened that seeks to determine the probable links between members of the clubs, as they call the ‘barras bravas’, with the criminal gangs. Some experts point out the similarities between the behaviors of Mexican violent groups in stadiums and those of other South American countries, especially Argentines, to the point of having appropriated their songs.
Incidents in Brazil and Uruguay
At the same time as the incidents in Mexico, a fight between Atlético Mineiro and Cruzeiro fans left at least one dead and one wounded in Brazil this Sunday in Brazil. On February 24, two Bahia players were also injured after an explosive device was thrown at the team’s bus. One week later, a group of Paraná fans invaded the field of Vila Capanema, in Curitiba, with the intention of attacking the players of his team. In addition, the Gremio bus was stoned by supporters of Internacional, its main rival in Porto Alegre, and left several players injured.
In Uruguay, meanwhile, the fifth date of the Apertura tournament had to be suspended after threats received by the referees during the matches between Nacional-Torque and Peñarol-Danubio. Violence in the countryside is a regional problem.
