Miami mayor outraged by Copa America disaster at Hard Rock Stadium, joins calls for change
The mayor of Miami joined a chorus of condemnation for the dangerous rush of fans entering Hard Rock Stadium without tickets Sunday night for the Copa America final between Argentina and Colombia. The fans pushed through gates, trampled people, hopped fences, climbed through the ventilation system, and trashed an escalator while evading police and security personnel.
"We are outraged by the unprecedented events at tonight's Copa America finals," read a joint statement from Mayor Daniella Levine Cava and Chief Public Safety Officer James Reyes. "The Copa America final is organized by Conmebol and Miami-Dade Police Department provides security support along with other law enforcement agencies. Tonight, MDPD assigned 550 officers to the stadium, including our Priority Response Team.
"In addition, MDPD brought in more personnel from more jurisdictions to support everyone's safety and wellbeing."
The statement also said the Mayor received briefings on plans to get everyone out of the stadium safely at the end of the game, and added the incident will be reviewed to prevent issues in the future. Hard Rock Stadium in Miami is scheduled to host seven World Cup games in 2026.
"Let's be clear: This situation should never have taken place and cannot happen again," the statement read.
Reactions from organizations, fans, players and media were strong and swift during and after the match. Horror and fear combined with calls to action for significant change ahead of 2026.
"In collaboration with CONMEBOL and law enforcement officers, the decision was made to open the stadium gates for a short period of time to all fans in order to prevent stampedes and serious injury at the perimeter," a Hard Rock Stadium spokesperson said in a statement. "There was serious concern of fans being crushed in an attempt to enter. Law enforcement and security personnel were immediately deployed throughout the stadium and surrounding area to keep fans as safe as possible in light of this unprecedented situation.
CONMEBOL representatives have not yet responded to requests for comment.
The chaos at Uruguay-Colombia Wednesday night is a stain on the Copa America, reflecting poorly on CONMEBOL & 2026 World Cup host the US.
The players & their traumatized families deserve better than the scenes described by Uruguay captain Jose Gimenez. 💔pic.twitter.com/KMtPYLu4ip— Men in Blazers (@MenInBlazers) July 11, 2024
Marcelo Bielsa absolutely going in on CONMEBOL & USA for the lack of organization, logistics, security, and field conditions in #CopaAmerica amongst a few things.
Brings up the US’s part in FIFA Gate.
Absolute banger of a presser 🗣️
pic.twitter.com/QNTAkzwCDI— herculez gomez (@herculezg) July 12, 2024
A harrowing night for all those who love the game of football and its growth across this nation. The optics of this repeated, deeply disturbing chaos make us look so unserious and unready.
pic.twitter.com/eMLkjbXbXP— Men in Blazers (@MenInBlazers) July 15, 2024
So while we blame whoever was in charge of the #CopaAmerica final and we should because it was not professional and subpar to say the least, let’s not forget the exact same thing happened at Wembley for the Euro Final in ‘21. It was unsettling to say the least to feel the…
— Taylor Twellman (@TaylorTwellman) July 15, 2024
My family have traveled around the World to see games in countries I’ve either played or worked in. Last night was the first time I’ve been genuinely concerned for their safety… and it was in our country. I hope there will be accountability for those that were in charge. https://t.co/xqL5qUkagy
— Stu Holden (@stuholden) July 15, 2024
This is happening at the final of a major football tournament. In America. It is an absolute insanity.
pic.twitter.com/QVP2VFR4H5— Men in Blazers (@MenInBlazers) July 15, 2024
This is a 2026 World Cup Venue. . 🏟️
Regardless of them telling us that CONMEBOL is the oficial organizador of this tournament.
Terrible optics.
pic.twitter.com/3wC9RRPMYn— herculez gomez (@herculezg) July 14, 2024
As tragic as it is to bring this up, literally getting shades of the Hillsborough disaster.
Multiple people from CONMEBOL need to resign after this final. The fact that lives are at risk because of this is genuinely shocking.
Disgusted watching this. pic.twitter.com/Mg825WTYLt— EiF (@EiFSoccer) July 15, 2024
The "inhumane" Copa América ends with blood, distress and tears on CONMEBOL's hands.
A column on the final overshadowed by a preventable fiasco — and an explanation of how it should've been prevented:https://t.co/tcI838gJt2— Henry Bushnell (@HenryBushnell) July 15, 2024
Hard Rock Stadium leadership will face criticism for dangerously mismanaged crowd control, but CONMEBOL rules dictate stadium access, ignored best practices and led to long waits for both media and fans at many venues throughout the tournament. https://t.co/JkrNAlzfSH
— Iliana Limón Romero (@LAT_Iliana) July 15, 2024
We’ve organized multiple World Cups…and historically successful World Cups. Talk to CONMEBOL.🇺🇸⚽️
Organizamos muchas Copas del Mundo...y Copas del Mundo historicamente exitosas. Habla con CONMEBOL.🇺🇸⚽️ https://t.co/eSbPBf0Qhe— Alexi Lalas (@AlexiLalas) July 15, 2024
Conmebol and the organizers of the Copa America have been a total disaster from the Uruguayan players and family safety to now the safety of Argentinian and Colombian fans, this is giving us Paris UCL flashbacks that Liverpool fans went through. https://t.co/YzARJ3mL5s
— Moby (@Mobyhaque1) July 14, 2024
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Copa America disaster draws ire of Miami mayor, others call for change
