Discipline handed out after riot less than satisfactory?

The Mexican Soccer Federation and Liga MX announced severe penalties to the Querétaro soccer organization over the extreme violence at its stadium on Saturday. Though they didn’t rise to disaffiliation – a punishment sought by many across Mexico’s soccer landscape – there was some heft to the sanctions.

The Federation (FMF) decided against kicking the Gallos Blancos out of the Liga MX so as not to penalize the players, the coaching staff and the team’s administrative employees.

The principal penalties handed down were: 1. No fans at home games for one year; 2. A 5-year ban to four top executives (Gabriel Solares, Adolfo Ríos, Greg Taylor and Manuel Velarde can have no affiliation with any club or business connected to the FMF or Liga MX); 3. 1.5 million-peso fine to outgoing front office; 4. Ownership/administration of the team reverts to Grupo Caliente (owners of the Xolos de Tijuana franchise who were in the process of selling it to Solares et al) but they must put it back up for sale by the end of 2022; 5. A three-year ban on attending home games for the team’s supporters’ groups; and, 6. forfeit of Saturday’s game to Atlas, 3-0.

In response to the horrific scenes of mayhem at the Estadio Corregidora, the FMF will also prohibit all supporters’ groups from attending away games the rest of the year.

FMF addresses fan violence

Incidents of fan violence are not unknown in Mexico, but Saturday’s mayhem left the Liga MX and the FMF with a black eye as images of the brutality and bloodshed trended globally across social media.

In 2017, a teenage América supporter was stabbed to death by a member of the Querétaro “barra,” Tigres and Monterrey fans clashed before a “Clásico Regiomontano” (also in 2017) leaving a Tigres fan with stab wounds while one Rayados booster tried to run down Tigres fans before a game. Gunshots were fired during a melee before a Tigres-San Luis match last year.

So, Liga MX officials and team executives met on Tuesday to address the violence too often linked to “barras” (supporters’ groups backed by Liga MX teams) and issued a league-wide directive requiring teams to identify and register every member of their “barra.”

A Fan ID policy will eventually be obligatory. In fact, the FMF has been experimenting with Fan ID during the most recent El Tri home games. They hope to put it to broader use for the March 24 World Cup qualifier against Team USA.

Each franchise will be required to have facial recognition equipment installed at its stadium by the end of the year and each club must hire a chief of security. Teams are now prohibited from giving any kind of financial or material support to their “barras.”

The FMF and Liga MX have also agreed to create a Security Council that will oversee, coordinate and assist with security at games and installations across the league. Clubs will also be required to submit detailed security reports to the Council following each game.

Legal fall-out from the riot

Fourteen suspects have been arrested for taking part in the brawling (one was reportedly turned in by his mother) as municipal authorities pursue criminal charges against the thugs who sent 40 people to hospital, two of whom remain in critical condition.

State Gov. Mauricio Kuri announced the suspension of five officials who were in charge of security at the La Corregidora, including three state police officers. Two members of the state Civil Protection unit were also suspended.

After meeting with Liga MX president Mikel Arriola on Sunday, Gallos Blancos owner Gabriel Solares insisted the team had the required security staff of 600 people, but did acknowledge that the club was at fault.

More than half of those contracted for Saturday’s game were simple private security employees. Some of those employees claimed they were paid only 300 pesos ($15 dollars) for the day, suggesting they were not hired through a reputable security agency.

There was a notable lack of police presence in the stands during the match and plenty of videos circulated revealing that policemen in attendance did little to address the violence.

One police officer chatted on his mobile phone while panicking fans scurried for safety (above), while another officer in riot gear ignored the mayhem in the stands even after being alerted to the situation by a player.

Others told stories of flagging down patrol cars outside the stadium for help only to be told that the officers “couldn’t do anything because it was private property.”

By Tuesday, the league had announced that the Clausura 2022 season would resume this weekend while Sunday’s three games that were postponed will be made up during the upcoming FIFA break. That decision was met with displeasure by the Tigres who have several players likely to be summoned to their respective national teams.