Followers appeared to breach the safety gates at Exhausting Rock Stadium hours earlier than the Copa América ultimate between Argentina and Colombia on Sunday night.
Movies posted on social media confirmed followers leaping over safety railings close to the south-west entrance of the stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida, and operating previous cops and stadium attendants. Tickets weren’t being scanned and few cops or stadium officers may very well be seen within the sea of individuals.
Some followers began climbing over fences to get in, whereas video captured a bunch of followers climbing via vents to enter the stadium.
A handful of individuals may very well be seen receiving medical remedy and asking for water within the sweltering South Florida warmth. Officers have been in a position to push the gang behind black gates and lock down the doorway in order that nobody may get inside, though loads of followers had already made it to their seats earlier than then.
BREAKING: The gates at Exhausting Rock Stadium have been breached and scores of followers have begun streaming in for the 2024 #CopaAmerica ultimate. Police are scrambling to try to stem the move of individuals. pic.twitter.com/fkoMMYGk8K
— Kyle Bonn (@the_bonnfire) July 14, 2024
One younger fan carrying an Argentina jersey was let contained in the gate crying hysterically as the person who was with him and a police officer tried to consolation him.
A fan named Claudio, who traveled to the sport from Mendoza in Argentina, spoke of not having the ability to breathe as police tried to subdue the chaos.
Miami-Dade County’s police division issued a press release on social media after the scene, mentioning that there have been “a number of incidents” earlier than the gates opened on the stadium.
“These incidents have been a results of the unruly conduct of followers making an attempt to entry the stadium,” the assertion mentioned. “We’re asking everybody to be affected person, and abide by the principles set by our officers and Exhausting Rock Stadium personnel. We’re actively working with Exhausting Rock Stadium to make sure a secure surroundings for all these attending. Unruly conduct will get you ejected and/or arrested.”
A sellout crowd of greater than 65,000 was anticipated for the championship match of the South American match.
It isn’t clear which of the followers who gained entrance throughout the rush had tickets to the match – Conmebol, South America’s governing physique, launched a press release a day earlier than warning that followers will need to have tickets to enter the venue.
The match has been marred by organizational issues and safety considerations. Uruguay coach Marcelo Bielsa criticized the competitors’s organizers after a brawl between his gamers and Colombian followers, and Canada coach Jesse Marsch mentioned his crew was handled like second-class residents.
