At least 12 people have died with more than 100 injured in a crowd crush at a football stadium in El Salvador on May 20th, the Central American country’s Government has confirmed.
‘The Guardian’ stated that the professional football clubs based in El Salvador – Alianza F.C. and Club Deportivo Fas – were playing the second leg of their playoff quarter-final game at the Estadio Cuscatlán in San Salvador – the country’s capital, when play was suspended after 16 minutes.
Alianza Fútbol Club, also known simply as Alianza, is a professional football club based in San Salvador, El Salvador. Founded in 1958, Alianza was almost immediately successful, winning its first championships in the 1966 and 1967 Salvadoran seasons.
The Estadio Cuscatlán is a football stadium located in the City of San Salvador, El Salvador. It was inaugurated in 1976. It can hold 53,400 spectators, making it the stadium with the largest spectator capacity in Central America and the Caribbean.
The C.D. Fas is a professional Salvadoran football club based in Santa Ana, El Salvador. It competes in the Primera División de Fútbol de El Salvador, the country’s top professional league. The team’s nickname is Los Tigres. The C.D. Fas was founded on February 16th, 1947.
The Estadio Óscar Quiteño is a multipurpose stadium in Santa Ana, El Salvador. It is currently used mostly for football matches, and is the home stadium of Club Deportivo FAS. The stadium holds 17,500 spectators and was built in 1963.
The country’s football governing body wrote on Twitter, “The Salvadoran Football Federation deeply regrets the events that occurred at the Cuscatlán Stadium. It also expresses solidarity with the relatives of those affected and deceased in this incident.”
‘The Guardian’ further stated that the federation added that it would immediately request a report on the incident while also suspending the tournament after the May 20th events, calling for a meeting with the National Security Commission for Sport Venues on May 21st.
The Estadio Cuscatlán is one of the largest stadiums in Central America and has an official capacity of holding more than 44,000 fans. Footage posted online showed severe overcrowding outside an entry gate, with officials claiming they would investigate reports of fake match tickets being sold.
The President of El Salvador, Nayib Bukele, said the national civil police and the Attorney General’s office would conduct a thorough investigation into the events at the stadium.
Bukele wrote on Twitter, “Everyone will be investigated: Teams, managers, stadium, box office, league, federation, etc. Whoever the culprits are, they will not go unpunished.”
Officials added that about 500 people had been given medical treatment at the stadium, with around 100 of those transferred to the nearby hospitals. The country’s Health Minister, Francisco Alabi, said that most of those injured are in a stable condition and that there have been no reports of deaths from the hospitals.
The Spanish LaLiga clubs Real Madrid CF and Atlético de Madrid both posted messages on Twitter after news of the tragedy broke, “Real Madrid wishes to express their condolences and affection to the loved ones of the fans who passed away at the Cuscatlán Stadium in El Salvador, and their desire for a swift recovery for those affected by this tragedy.”
Atlético Madrid wrote, “We regret the enormous tragedy that occurred at the Cuscatlán Stadium in El Salvador and we convey our deepest condolences to the families and friends of the victims. Rest in peace.”
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