by Marco Bruno
The Buenos Aires police speak of 15 robberies or looting. A five-year-old boy in a coma. According to the authorities, five million people took to the streets in the capital. For the newspaper La Nacin, the damage is unimaginable
An endless and tragic party. The World Cup won by Argentina in Qatar – the third in the history of the Albiceleste – brought delirium to the streets of Buenos Aires. Four days have passed since the final, decided on penalties after a stunning 3-3 draw, and nobody wants to stop.
Five million people flocked to the streets of the capital, authorities say. Singing can be heard around the clock: as early as 8 a.m., dozens of people wearing Messi’s number ten jersey jump up and praise their heroes.
The open bus ritual tour has been cancelled. The obelisk in the Plaza de la Repblica between Corrientes Avenue and 9 de Julio, the monument erected in 1936 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the founding of the city, was unreachable.
Players had to climb into hastily prepared helicopters for a symbolic salute from above. There were fans who slid off the bridges on the bus to hug Seleccin, jeopardizing the safety of everyone, fans and players. A fan slipped dramatically on the tarmac after falling from above.
Evidence of this mass delirium is contained in one of the many videos circulating on the web and social media: we see a fan being taken away on a stretcher, with a conspicuously bandaged head and perhaps a broken arm, which is always the case nor does twist the other arm, almost in ecstasy.
The party stops at nothing. There are those who climbed to the top of the obelisk: we are over 60 meters high. It wasn’t long before the celebrations turned violent.
In Bahia Blanca, a town 400 kilometers from Buenos Aires, the celebrations ended in tragedy: a 22-year-old boy died, strangled by the flag around his neck and caught in the wheel of his motorcycle. Another fan died after falling from a roof. A five-year-old boy in a coma.
A group of fans who had been waiting for hours for the players’ parade clashed with police in riot gear after learning they would only see Messi and his companions from above.
The world champions fly over the entire route with helicopters because continuing by land is not possible because of the explosion of joy among the people, Gabriela Cerruti, spokeswoman for President Alberto Fernndez, wrote on social media – representatives of the opposition criticized their decision to organize a national holiday precisely for winning the world championship.
Police in the Argentine capital reported about 15 instances of robbery or looting – other videos show a number of cars having their wheels taken away. Even in the obelisk area, which some fans forced entry into, the agents intervened to calm the riots: the preliminary tally of 14 prisoners and 21 injured.
In front of the memorial there were clashes between police and fans with bottles, stones and rubber bullets. The riots also spread to other public buildings such as banks: a group of people broke into a branch and stole a printer.
According to reconstructions by the Argentine newspaper La Nacin, the damage is unimaginable. The first problems emerged on Tuesday night, well before the national team’s arrival at Buenos Aires airport, late at night, when fans breached the fences defending the obelisk.
December 22, 2022 (change December 22, 2022 | 12:39)
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