Colombia national team coach Nestor Lorenzo said the security breach at Hard Rock Stadium affected his players ahead of their 2024 Copa America final loss to Argentina on Sunday night, calling the situation “anxious.”
Hours before kick-off, fans without tickets to the match stormed through the southwest gate of the venue, leading to many being knocked down and detained by police and security personnel. A security guard at the stadium confirmed to ESPN that the southwest gate had been closed due to a violation, before the entire venue was put on alert.
“Imagine, from the locker room we were trying to communicate with family, with friends, to see if they were in trouble or not, it was overwhelming. So it was chaotic. We tried to keep the team calm, but there was anxiety,” Lorenzo said after the match.
“Imagine the schedule for a day to play a final, everything goes minute by minute, breakfast, lunch, team talk, the bus leaving, the arrival and then you have to say: 'No, we have to wait half an hour, no, 45 minutes, no, an hour'.
“Everything was uprooted. I repeat, it happened in both teams. It's a complaint, but not a cry.”
After fans had broken through the gates, pre-match warm-ups ended abruptly and players were forced to leave the field and head to the locker rooms. The match eventually started 75 minutes late.
“They warmed up, cooled down, warmed up again and then there was a longer break,” Lorenzo added.
“Strange things, for both sides but the less experienced team feels it more. There is no need to complain or anything, but I said that this can affect the physical and generally the tension is felt more by the person who has less experience in this type of event.”
Organisers confirmed that all gates were open to prevent serious injuries and the risk of a stampede. Hard Rock Stadium issued a statement after the final blaming “unruly fans” for the disruption.
“Preparations [for the final] “It included an increase in the number of police and security officers available, with more than double the number of staff than a typical event at a full-capacity stadium,” it said.
“Throughout the afternoon and evening, there were numerous attempts by unruly fans without tickets to overpower security and law enforcement personnel at the stadium entry points, putting themselves, other fans and security and stadium staff at extreme risk.
“Several stadium gates were strategically closed and reopened in an attempt to allow ticketed visitors to enter in a safe and controlled manner. Fans continued to engage in unlawful conduct: fighting with police officers, knocking down walls and barricades, and vandalizing the stadium, causing significant property damage.
“When it became apparent that it would not be safe to start the match at 8 p.m., a joint decision was made to postpone the match. Shortly after 8 p.m., stadium officials, CONMEBOL, CONCACAF and law enforcement communicated and decided to open the stadium gates for a brief period of time to all fans to prevent stampedes and serious injuries on the perimeter.
“We will continue to work with law enforcement to identify and hold accountable the offenders who engaged in illegal conduct tonight. It is disappointing that a night of celebration was marred by illegal and unsafe behavior, and we will thoroughly review the processes and protocols put in place tonight and work with law enforcement to ensure an event like this does not happen again.”
Argentina defeated Colombia with a goal from Lautaro Martinez in the 112th minute of extra time, seeing the Albiceleste become consecutive Copa America champions.
