Argentina may be the 2024 Copa America champions, but that doesn’t mean all the fight for the tournament is over.
Several fans have filed lawsuits against South American soccer’s governing body, CONMEBOL, and South Florida Stadium LLC, the operator of the Miami Dolphins’ Hard Rock Stadium, for denying them entry to the Copa final on Sunday, according to ESPN and The Miami Herald.
The situation around Hard Rock Stadium was an absolute disaster for everyone involved, except for the ticketless fans who found themselves at the center of the chaos. After security personnel tried unsuccessfully to keep those fans out of the stadium, operators opted to close all the gates in an attempt to restore order.
Instead, it created a backlog in some areas and ended with many fans who paid hundreds or thousands of dollars waiting outside while the game was played. The game itself was also delayed for more than an hour.
The lawsuits identify the individuals affected. ESPN reports on a lawsuit filed Monday by Jacqueline Martinez, who alleges she purchased four tickets to the Copa America final for $4,395.59 and was then denied entry, while another was filed Wednesday by Marta Pintos, Eduardo Martinez and Nicolas Osorio. Both lawsuits seek more than $100,000 in damages.
At the Herald, Isabel Quintero said she bought two $1,000 tickets for herself and her father as a belated Father’s Day gift, but that they were denied entry and that Quintero was pushed, stomped and slammed into objects. Her lawsuit blames stadium security for an alleged lack of staffing, training and preparation.
From the Herald:
The defendants “negligently failed to have any procedures … for removing unruly, disruptive, and/or problematic patrons that governed the supervision and/or security of their premises; or, in the alternative, … in fact had procedures governing the supervision and/or security of their premises, but implemented such procedures in a careless and negligent manner,” the suit says.
Ticketless fans are nothing new at major international soccer events, especially in South America. Yahoo Sports’ Henry Bushnell writes that tournament organizers typically prepare with multiple security perimeters, something CONMEBOL and Hard Rock Stadium simply didn’t do.
And now they could end up paying a hefty price. CONMEBOL released a statement on Monday pointing the finger at Hard Rock Stadium, claiming that it was “subject to decisions made by the Hard Rock Stadium authorities, in accordance with the contractual responsibilities established for security operations,” and that its recommendations “were not taken into account.”
