Mexico soccer riot: Sanctions, latest fallout after violence between Queretaro, Atlas fans in Liga MX

Simon Borg

Mexico soccer riot: Sanctions, latest fallout after violence between Queretaro, Atlas fans in Liga MX image

The first arrests were made in the wake of the violent March 5 riot that took place during a Mexican league match in Queretaro, and league owners issued sanctions and took other extraordinary measures following one of the darkest days for the sport in Mexico.

State police in Queretaro launched a search for 26 individuals — authorities have arrested 10 so far — identified in a brawl that erupted among supporters in the stands during a Liga MX match between Queretaro and Atlas. Those fights spilled onto the field and caused the suspension of the match as well as other matches that same weekend from Mexico's top division. Liga MX play will resume on March 11.

The scenes from the riot at the Estadio Corregidora in Queretaro were disturbing, graphic and violent, and they have led to outrage across the Mexican soccer community and calls for accountability and change. As of March 8, there were no official reports of deaths from the incidents which left 26 hospitalized with five in serious condition and one in critical condition.

Liga MX owners met March 8 in an extraordinary session called by league president Mikel Arriola, who has promised to mete out exemplary punishment and reassess the relationship of clubs with their supporters groups. He has already banned traveling fan groups in Liga MX and a new fan ID registration system will be introduced using facial recognition technology to assist with crowd control and security.

The future of the Queretaro club — also known as the Gallos Blancos (White Roosters) — and its owners was discussed among the owners, but the club was not expelled from Liga MX. Here are the sanctions that were dished out.

Mexico riot sanctions, punishments & new initiatives

In addition to the Queretaro state government cracking down on fans involved in the riot, these were the sanctions that were handed down by Liga MX. Expulsion from the league was not one of the steps taken.

Liga MX president Mikel Arriola announced that the league's conclusion was that the March 5 riot was directly caused by the lack of action of the private security company, the police, and the club, which is ultimately responsible for the hiring and coordination of the stadium security. The following were the sanctions handed down as a result:

  • NO TEAM BAN: Queretaro men's, women's and youth teams will not be banned, but they will play their home games behind closed doors for one year (through March 7, 2023);

  • STADIUM BAN (conditional): Queretaro's La Corregidora Stadium is banned from hosting matches for a year. But the Queretaro teams can still play in that stadium as long as the matches are played behind closed doors and a three-kilometer security radius is established by state officials;

  • SUPPORTERS GROUP BAN: The Queretaro supporters will be banned for three years from home games and one-year from away games;

  • OWNERS & MANAGEMENT BAN: Queretaro current owners and management are suspended for five years (Gabriel Solares, Adolfo Rios, Greg Taylor and Manuel Velarde);

  • QUERETARO IS FINED: The amount is a total of $70,000; 

  • TEAM UP FOR SALE: Queretaro ownership reverts to its former owner (Grupo Caliente's Jorge Alberto Hank of Club Tijuana) on the condition that it is sold by the end of 2022. (The franchise could also move to another city, in which case the home supporters ban will only run for one year instead of three.);

  • QUERETARO LOSS VS. ATLAS: Visiting team Atlas, which had a 1-0 lead at the time of the riot, will be handed a 3-0 win by Liga MX and the match will not be replayed;

  • ATLAS FANS BAN: The Atlas supporters group is banned for six months from away matches (through Sept. 8, 2022);

  • LIFETIME BAN FOR FANS: Lifetime ban from any match in Mexico for all individuals convicted of wrongdoing in the March 5 riot.

The league also highlighted the anonymity of the supporters as the other main contributing factor to the violence. For that reason, the league is taking new steps to manage supporters groups and stadium security:

  1. NO VISITING SUPPORTERS GROUPS: The decision to ban visiting supporters groups was previously announced on March 6, but it was confirmed after the owners meeting;

  2. NO CLUB SUPPORT FOR FAN GROUPS: Clubs cannot support fan groups (with tickets, funds, etc.) and any clubs that do will face league sanctions;

  3. SUPPORTERS GROUP IDENTIFICATION: Beginning immediately, home supporters groups need to be identified before they can be granted entry into the stadium. Clubs that cannot accomplish this, will not be able to admit those fans to their supporters group section. This does not impact fans who are not in supporters groups;

  4. INTRODUCTION OF FAN I.D. PROGRAM: Beginning in 2022-2023, Liga MX will institute a fan ID program for supporters groups, using facial recognition. That will be extended to all fans admitted to any stadium. All Liga MX venues will be outfitted with facial recognition technology;

  5. NEW SECURITY DIVISION IN MEXICAN SOCCER: A division of Security, Intelligence and Risk Analysis will be created to centralize all information, coordination and planning between the league and federation.

Arriola said the league would financially assist the efforts of the clubs to implement the fan ID program and facial recognition, and the new "division of security and intelligence" will coordinate efforts with all clubs.

What happened in the Mexico soccer riot?

According to reports, barriers meant to separate the supporters groups were breached and the fighting began in the stands, causing some fans to invade the field to escape it. But the violence followed them, and the Queretaro-Atlas match was eventually suspended in the 63rd minute.

The video below shows how the match descended into chaos, with a glaring absence of security personnel in the stands or on the pitch.

Atlas, the defending Mexican league champion, was winning 1-0 at the time, but the competition quickly became a secondary concern with images of families running for safety and bodies laying motionless in the wake of the fighting.

While there has been speculation on social media about possible lives lost — some fans who were at the stadium have subsequently gone public about fatalities they either heard about or allegedly witnessed — there have been no official reports of deaths.

There is a history of incidents between the Queretaro and Atlas supporter groups, with past clashes as recent as 2013, 2010 and 2007, according to reports. Mexican daily Milenio published a story outlining recent issues involving the supporters groups, adding that they are "considered two of the most violent" in Mexican soccer.

That's why the security shortcomings at the Corregidora Stadium were immediately singled out as an area of concern by Liga MX president Arriola: "There will be exemplary punishment for those responsible for the absence of security in the stadium."

It's notable that the Queretaro State Police posted a tweet during the match in which they confirmed their presence at the stadium and noted (translated from Spanish) that "the first half is taking place in a tranquil environment and with a good atmosphere in the stands." That state would devolve shortly after.

Were there deaths after the Mexico riot?

Despite the multitude of graphic videos shared on social media showing motionless bodies strewn across the Corregidora Stadium grounds, the Queretaro State Civil Protection body did not report any deaths.

A total of 26 individuals required medical attention, and three days after the incidents, 20 were released with six still hospitalized: five in serious condition and one in a critical state.

Liga MX has stuck by the official numbers released by the state of Queretaro, including the zero fatalities, but personal accounts from fans who were in the stadium tell a different story. 

One video that surfaced the day after the violence featured an emotionally distraught Atlas fan who claimed her friend, who she named as Arturo Buenrostro, died in the stadium attacks. She added that she was informed there were 32 deaths, though her claims have not been substantiated. When confronted with this information, the Liga MX president continued to point to the official state count.

In another video interview, a 16-year-old Atlas fan claimed one of his close friends died at the Corregidora Stadium, but he declined to share his name "out of respect." He also indicated there were others who perished "assassinated," accusing stadium security of allowing Queretaro fans into the Atlas visiting supporter section from both sides to entrap them.

"Instead of helping us, [the police] opened the gates so they [the Queretaro fans] could hit us," he said, carrying a bandage around his head he said was the result of being struck by police.

He accused the stadium security of working in tandem with the Queretaro supporters who orchestrated the attack. He went on to claim that while Atlas fans were thoroughly searched before entering the stadium, the Queretaro fans were carrying weapons, including a pistol he witnessed.

Yet another fan who claimed to be at the stadium said that he hoped there were no deaths at the stadium, but "those of us who were there, saw how the fans wound up ... you saw them in pools of blood, not moving. We really hope there were no fatal victims, but it was horrible."

Amid the speculation and outrage, the mother of one Atlas supporter appeared in front of cameras to confirm her son was alive despite other suggestions made on social media: "Please, I'm asking you not to spread news that my son is dead ... I have family. Don't spread things that are not true."

Days later the Queretaro governor Kuri continued to reiterate that there were no deaths and that "we gain nothing by lying." He even gave out his personal WhatsApp number for anyone who had "other truthful information."

Where was security at Queretaro stadium?

Arriola's comments about the "absence of security" and the eyewitness allegations called into question Queretaro club and municipal officials as to their responsibility for preventing the violence that took place.

The Queretaro state governor, Mauricio Kuri, promised an in-depth investigation, but he also pointed the finger at the club. "The Gallos [Queretaro] ownership group and institutions will have to respond for the events," Kuri said on March 5.

Video clips shared on social media showed security personnel who were not actively responding to the chaos unfolding around them. Kuri said that the individual captured in the video below was suspended: 

The day after the incidents, the Queretaro public safety secretary Miguel Angel Contreras said that “the private security firm did not take all the personnel that it needed to take to cover the event." The league later confirmed that the private security company did not have the personnel to react to the situation.

State officials admitted that the public police presence at the stadium was not sufficient, but that based on the stadium management agreement, security was the primary responsibility of the private firm, which in this case was hired by the club.

Queretaro club president Gabriel Solares said in a March 6 press conference that there were 600 security personnel at the game based on existing rules and protocols that determine the exact security count. "They were overcome not because of the number of security staff, but because of the [violent] actions," Solares commented a day later.

But those numbers are different from the ones cited by Queretaro governor Kuri, who said the state requested that the club hire 400 private security personnel for the match. Kuri said they verified that there were only 290 actually present. "We should have held up the game until there were 400 personnel," said the governor, announcing the suspension of the state official who allowed the match to go ahead.

The governor also confirmed that the private security company in question has since been suspended and dissolved in the state of Queretaro. According to an in-depth report by MedioTiempo, the security company was recruiting individuals just days before the match for a $14 day rate. According to the article, the only requirements to be hired involved having an ID, no criminal record and black attire.

"It was a massacre. It was planned. It was premeditated. It was obvious that they did what they wanted to do with us," said an Atlas fan in a TV interview. "They [security] opened the door for them. When we ran out, we asked the police for protection and they didn't support us in any moment. They were off to the side and they were observing us."

Queretaro sporting director Adolfo Rios shared that view: "Yes, it would seem to be a situation that had already been arranged," Rios said. He added that "It would seem that there was a situation where there was an agreement to ignite chaos in an exact minute of the match."

Liga MX taking action

Liga MX responded shortly after the riots on March 5, opening an immediate investigation and activating the league's Disciplinary Commission to begin the sanctioning process.

Despite calls to immediately suspend play around the league, the Liga MX matches scheduled for that same night moved forward as planned. But after their conclusion, Liga MX announced the suspension of all men's and women's professional matches for March 6-7. 

Mexico's second-division Liga de Expansion MX is resuming play without fans on March 8, while Liga MX is expected to play its slate of matches on the weekend of March 11-13.

One of the Liga MX president's first moves was to announce that visiting supporters will no longer be permitted to travel to watch their teams play on the road in Liga MX.

An emergency Liga MX owners meeting took place on March 8, producing a number of sanctions. Additional new measures were introduced to tackle fan violence in stadiums, including changing the relationship between clubs and their supporters groups. Arriola had previously mentioned digital fan registration and the use of technology to better track and monitor supporters moving forward, all steps which were enacted at the owners meeting.

Before the owners meeting Arriola did not rule out the possibility that Queretaro could be expelled from the league, but that scenario did not come to pass.

The club's Corregidora Stadium was shut down beginning the day after the incident. Meanwhile, the Queretaro state secretary said she would be reviewing the existing stadium loan agreement between the state and soccer club in the case there has been a failure to comply with the contract. In that case, the agreement could be voided and the stadium turned back over to state control.

Regional governing body CONCACAF called for "strong football sanctions," while world governing body FIFA encouraged local authorities to "bring swift justice to those responsible." There is no indication that the violence could harm Mexico's ability to co-host 2026 World Cup matches together with the USA and Canada.

Graphic photos and videos on social media

WARNING: The videos and photos distributed on social media, some of which are shared below, are violent and graphic in nature and will be disturbing to some.

Social media was inundated with videos and photos from the stadium of motionless bodies on the ground being mercilessly kicked, others stripped of their clothes, and an already-bloodied fan taking a beating. The images and video were hard to watch.

But their existence were likely a factor in pushing officials to take extreme measures to ensure Liga MX does not see another incident of this nature again.

The following two videos showed potential security breaches that Liga MX president Arriola indicated gave rise to the violence:

Some of the images showed fans running across the field seeking safety. One man was shown protecting another Atlas fan. There were suggestions on social media that it may have been a father protecting his son.

Mexican publication Esto had reporters on site at the Corregidora Stadium and they took photos and video of the events:

Radio Formula and Milenio reporter Joaquin Lopez-Doriga documented much of the day's violence on his Twitter page.

 

Queretaro sporting director Adolfo Rios, who was the first club official to issue a statement on the day of the attacks, was also captured on video apologizing to Atlas supporters at the stadium: "This is not Mexico. This is not what we want for our country. An apology, this hurts us a lot."

The day after the violence, one Atlas fan took to social media to thank a young Queretaro supporter for giving her the jersey off his back so she could get out of the stadium safely. She was hoping Twitter could help identify the individual in order that she could return his autographed Queretaro jersey.

Another Atlas fan shared a similar story, including a photo of the Queretaro jersey he received to help him and his wife leave the stadium.

And although one fan was pointing the finger at Queretaro coach Hernan Cristante for apparently suggesting that fans take the violence outside the stadium to avoid a suspension — Cristante later clarified he was only attempting to defuse the situation inside the stadium — he was also hailed for allowing fans to seek shelter in the club's locker room. One of those fans later thanked him.

Atlas also offered fans protection in their locker room.

Mexican international Edson Alvarez, who plays for Ajax in the Netherlands, wore a shirt for his team's March 6 match that read "No more violence." He also shared a message on Instagram in which he commented how the violence witnessed was "nothing more than a reflection of what we are as a society."

Simon Borg

Simon Borg Photo

Simon Borg is a senior editor at The Sporting News who has covered football/soccer for over a decade. A supporter of Italian club Parma Calcio from his years growing up in Europe, he was previously a long-time member of Major League Soccer's digital media team, as a multimedia content producer, on-air personality, and Editor-in-Chief. Based in New York City, Borg is multilingual and has covered the domestic and global scene for TSN since 2021.