Match for the Chilean Super Cup on February 11 was suspended ten minutes before the end due to incidents caused by fans of the Colo Colo club. What happened and what will be the consequences?

All because of... flags?

Problems started even before the first whistle was blown, when a group of fans in white shirts broke through afence to move to another stand. This led to clashes with police and private security at the venue. These events caused a delay in the match, but it seemed that the situation was under control, especially since Colo Colo quickly took the lead through goals from Carlos Palacios and the fans' idol, Arturo Vidal.

However, at halftime, riots broke out again, and the second half of the match only began half an hour later, despite the fact that acts of violence and provocations did not cease with individuals remaining behind bars and beyond them at the pitch level. Although Colo Colo was on the verge of winning their first trophy of the year, fans of the team invaded the pitch in the 80th minute. The match was interrupted, but it did not help resolve the issue.

After the players of both teams left the field, clashes continued, and the National Stadium suffered from several small fires. The damage even reached the part of the stadium where a monument stands in honor of those who died and were detained during the Chilean dictatorship. It later turned out that the removal of flags with slogans against former President Piñera, who was a club director, and the current president of the National Professional Football Association (ANFP), Pablo Milad, was the first point of ignition by the security forces.

© Gobierno de Chile

Costly football celebration

The Ministry of Sports issued a press release on the matter. It was announced that the repair of the damages would amount to $102,501,171 and would be covered by the Chilean Football Federation, the organizer of the event. ANFP did not comment on the final decision regarding the completion of the match. It was only announced that an investigation would be launched to identify those involved in the riots.

The allowable capacity of the National Stadium for the Super Cup match was reduced from 40,000 to 30,000 seats due to an insufficient number of police officers who had been supporting firefighting efforts in Valparaíso and attending the funeral of former President Sebastián Piñera, who died in an accident, during the week.

Super Cup match marked the return of football to the National Stadium after two years of closure due to renovations for the Pan American Games. It was also the first official match for Arturo Vidal in Colo Colo colors, as he returns to Chilean football after 17 years.

© Christian Córdova (cc: by-nc-nd)

Chilean athletes criticize

The internet stirred, and even Chilean athletes participating in the Pan American Games, held in Santiago in 2023, spoke out. There is a difference between this audience and the spectators of the Pan American Games. Prohibit playing football in this place until these people show a bit of culture; they've just created it and are already destroying it. What a pity, wrote javelin thrower Joaquín Ballivian on Instagram.