Fifa ‘closely monitoring’ World Cup host city Guadalajara amid cartel chaos

Guadalajara, one of three Mexican venues slated to stage 2025 World Cup matches this summer, is under intense scrutiny from Fifa after the weekend death of cartel kingpin Nemesio Oseguara Cervantes—known as “El Mencho”—triggered a nationwide wave of violence.

Cervantes, head of the powerful Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), was killed during a Mexican military operation in Jalisco state on Sunday. Within hours, reprisals spread across 20 states: highways were choked by blazing vehicles, banks and storefronts were torched, and plumes of smoke rose above city skylines. At Guadalajara’s international airport, passengers were filmed sprinting and crouching between check-in counters after gunfire erupted on a nearby thoroughfare.

The unrest arrives only four months before the Estadio Akron in Zapopan, part of the Guadalajara metropolitan area, is scheduled to host the World Cup final. The 48,000-capacity ground is also pencilled in for a trio of play-off fixtures at the end of March involving Congo, Jamaica and New Caledonia. With fan safety now in question, Fifa issued a terse statement on Monday: “At Fifa Mexico, we are closely monitoring the situation in Jalisco and remain in constant communication with the authorities. We will continue to follow the actions and directions from the different government agencies, aimed at maintaining public safety and restoring normalcy.”

Domestic football has already felt the fallout. Liga MX postponed two Sunday fixtures—Querétaro vs Juárez in the men’s top flight and the women’s Clásico between Chivas and Club América—while second-tier games in Cancún and Celaya were also shelved. In Aguascalientes, the women’s match between Necaxa and Querétaro was abandoned after players dashed for the tunnel when what were believed to be gunshots echoed outside Estadio Victoria.

El Tri’s preparations have likewise been disrupted. Mexico are due to face Iceland in a friendly on Wednesday at Querétaro’s Corregidora Stadium, yet local organisers have yet to confirm whether the game will proceed as scheduled.

Away from the turmoil, tennis events have pressed ahead. The Mexican Open in Acapulco started on schedule Monday, although British number one Cameron Norrie crashed out in under an hour to 17-year-old Rafael Jodar. On the opposite coast, the WTA Merida Open continued at the Yucatán Country Club under heightened police presence; Katie Boulter advanced with a straight-sets win over Brazil’s Beatriz Haddad Maia.

With governments, broadcasters and travelling supporters watching closely, Fifa says it will not hesitate to adjust plans should Jalisco’s security climate deteriorate further.