Parts of Hard Rock Stadium were battered and destroyed after Argentina’s Copa America triumph over Colombia with chaos unfolding in Miami before the match
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Fears about how the USA will host the 2026 World Cup have been raised following chaotic scenes at the Copa America final in Miami.
On the pitch, Lionel Messi's Argentina battled past Colombia 1-0 in extra-time to claim Copa America glory on Sunday night, retaining the title they won back in 2021 when they defeated Brazil. Lautaro Martinez scored the only goal of the game in the 112th minute to make it three international trophy wins in a row for Argentina boss Lionel Scaloni.
But the final will be remembered for all the wrong reasons, with chaotic scenes playing out both before and during the game at Hard Rock Stadium, which is the home of the NFL's Miami Dolphins, and the event labelled a disaster.
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American authorities have alleged that hundreds of fans turned up to the Copa America finale without tickets and attempted to force their way into the stadium. They say that led CONMEBOL officials and police to close the gates around Hard Rock Stadium, which led to the them even closing all the entrances to the ground.
A CONMEBOL statement read: "We inform that people who do not have tickets will not be able to enter the stadium. Only those who have purchased tickets will be able to enter once access is enabled again. We inform that the match will be delayed 30 minutes, starting at 8:30p.m. local time."
What do you make of the chaos at Hard Rock Stadium? Let us know in the comments section below.
But the chaos continued with kick-off eventually pushed back to 9:15pm as fans trickled into their seats in dribs and drabs. Outside the ground however, fans were pictured scaling fences and rushing through turnstiles in an effort to get into the Copa America final.
And there were reportedly fans who were successful in gaining access to Hard Rock Stadium, who then also managed to evade both the police and security staff. A Miami-Dade Police statement on the chaos read: "We have had several incidents prior to the gates opening at Hard Rock Stadium for the Copa America final game.
"We are asking everyone to be patient and abide by the rules set by our officers and Hard Rock Stadium personnel. We are actively working with Hard Rock Stadium to ensure a safe environment for all those attending. Unruly behaviour will get you ejected and/or arrested. We have a ZERO TOLERANCE behaviour against unruly conduct from everyone attending."
The Hard Rock Stadium chaos has raised questions about just how well the US will be able to host the 2026 World Cup, which will invite even more teams and spectators to the global event. Alongside Canada and Mexico, the US will play host to the first 48-team World Cup.
Perhaps the most alarming part of the crowd chaos is the fact Hard Rock Stadium is a venue used to huge sporting events. During the Autumn and Winter, it hosts NFL games from September through till January seamlessly.
However, the disturbing scenes led former USMNT star turned pundit Alexi Lalas to describe the situation on Sunday night as: "Not a good look for the US".
"This is not a good look," said Lalas on FOX Soccer. "I understand this is not a good look for CONMEBOL (Copa America’s organizer), It is also because it is happening on our watch, in our country. Not a good look for the US less than two years out of the World Cup. I have no doubt that FIFA and the United States and Canada and Mexico will sort this out and make sure this doesn’t happen going forward.”
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