Residents of Guadalajara, Mexico, believe the city should not host World Cup matches, following a wave of violence that erupted following the killing of the country's most powerful cartel boss.
Hugo Alejandro Perez was at his home a few kilometers from the stadium that was supposed to host the World Cup when gunfire and explosions rang out outside his door.
The 53-year-old restaurant owner had previously been skeptical about his city, Guadalajara, hosting an international sports competition.
He has already seen a government that has failed to fix basic things, like water supply, coupled with cartel violence in the state of Jalisco. The wave of violence this week after the Mexican military killed the country's most powerful cartel boss only confirmed his suspicions.
"I don't think we should host the World Cup here. We have so many problems, and they want to invest in the World Cup? With this violence, it's not a good idea," Peres told the AP.
Perez joined others on Tuesday questioning Guadalajara's ability to host the World Cup, despite the Mexican government's claims that the competition would not be affected.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said yesterday that there was "no risk" to fans attending the World Cup. Jalisco Governor Jesus Pablo Lemus said he had spoken to local FIFA officials and they had no intention of changing anything about the schedule for the games.
The same day, the Portuguese Football Federation said it was "carefully monitoring the delicate situation" in Mexico. Portugal is scheduled to play a friendly against Mexico on March 28 at the renovated Azteca Stadium in Mexico City. The stadium is scheduled to host the first match of the World Cup on June 11.
The state of Jalisco, with its capital Guadalajara, is the headquarters of the Jalisco New Generation cartel, whose leader, Nemesio Osguera Cervantes, known as "El Mencho", was killed in a gunfight with the military that tried to arrest him.
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