The journalists from all over the world present in the press room of the Maracana Stadium on June 18, 2014 heard a thunderous noise. It was the metal fences that yielded to the pressure of more than 200 Chilean fans who wanted to enter – without tickets – to witness the clash in which Jorge Sampaoli’s side would beat reigning world champions Spain by two goals to zero.
The Brazilian police, who guarded all World Cup venues, acted promptly and rigorously, although they were only able to arrest 85 fans, who had to leave the country within 72 hours. The sanction imposed was the result of intensive negotiations between the Chilean Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Rio judiciary. Outraged FIFA took action to ensure the incident was not repeated, particularly when Chile, who were knocked out by penalties against the hosts in the round of 16, acted. Since then, the massive break-in into a sports facility without tickets has been referred to as a “blowout”.
In local competition, failures are common in the stadiums that are home to the teams with the largest attendance: Colo Colo and the University of Chile. They let fans who have not bought tickets into the venue in droves, but also those ultra-leaders who are forbidden from entering the stadiums. Therefore, they are coordinated and violent, hitting mostly security forces who do not have the deterrent means to prevent them.
The same phenomenon happened again this week in the La Boca neighborhood of Buenos Aires, this time caused by violent ultras from Colocolino who had warned of the situation because more than six thousand people had arrived and there were tickets for just over two thousand. They overran the police security perimeters at the entrances to La Bombonera and attempted to breach the turnstiles. Those who did not enter caused riots, burned tires and then moved to the tourist area of Puerto Madero, where clashes with the gendarmes broke out again.
Those who managed to enter verbally dueled the local bar and provoked in unusual ways: they tore up notes of the devalued Argentine currency, reminding that thousands of compatriots cross the border every day to buy wholesale groceries in supermarkets. After Boca Juniors’ one-to-zero triumph, new riots broke out in the surrounding streets. The total number of the excursion was 56 prisoners.
The situation is not new. For the Garra Blanca, the club’s ultras group, every trip to continental tournaments means an opportunity to cement the violent glory that has preceded them since 1998, when hundreds of baristas raided the 10th Maipú police station with a total of 32 detainees and several police officers stoned. wounded. There were official government efforts to get her released, and it was the club that ended up posting bail.
Excessive violence erupted again in 2004, 2011 and particularly in 2017, when fans again vandalized police stations in Mendoza, attacked Argentine gendarmes and looted nearby shops. The 34 detainees had to stay in prison for 12 days until the Chilean political authorities mediated again for their release and the club paid the costs.
This time, the situation escalated because the Football Safety Committee, the body responsible for policing Argentine bars, issued a statement banning Colo-Colo fans from attending new games during the 2023 season and filed a report with the South American Confederation to establish new disciplinary sanctions against the club.
The violent fame of Chile’s fans has drawn heavy sanctions both home and away but nothing seems to be working. Flaws continue to occur and the Chilean political authorities this week suspended the friendly matches between Colo Colo and Universidad de Chile against Colombia’s Deportivo Cali in Valparaíso for fear of excesses and irregularities in the organization of the event by the clubs, which are still are unable to develop a plan against violence.
Therefore, if Colo Colo qualifies for the second stage of the Copa Libertadores against Deportivo Pereira on June 29, there will certainly be a reduced capacity at the Monumental Stadium in Santiago. A double edged sword as it allows for better control when fewer fans are leaving. But it will whet the appetite of those who wish to enter without a ticket. And the blowout will be back.
Aldo Schiappacasse is one of the largest sports journalism companies in Chile. With a career in television, radio and written media, he is one of the conductors of País ADN. In EL PAÍS he writes columns about Chilean sport and social life