The Confederation of North America, Central America and the Caribbean Football (CONCACAF) announced changes to the venues of the event, replacing Celaya with León, while Irapuato remains as the other host city.
The Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Football (CONCACAF) announced two modifications to the schedule of its U-20 World Cup Qualifiers following a shooting in front of the hotel where the delegations of Costa Rica and Cuba were staying, which left one dead and one seriously injured in the city of Celaya, Guanajuato.
The sports entity announced on Wednesday afternoon the cancellation of the venue in Celaya and its relocation to León. Irapuato will still serve as the other host city for the event.
"Following a security incident outside a competitor's hotel in Celaya, and as a precaution to ensure the best possible experience for all participants, Concacaf has decided, in coordination with FMF, to move the remainder of the tournament to the cities of Irapuato (Estadio Sergio León Chávez) and León (Estadio León). No more matches will be played in Celaya," announced CONCACAF on X.
The change has led to the postponement of the Jamaica-Cuba and Costa Rica-United States matches, which were scheduled to be played this Thursday and have been moved to this Friday, July 26, in León.
The match between the two Caribbean teams will be at 2:06 p.m. (local time), while Costa Ricans and Americans will clash at 6:30 p.m.
The change of day will allow the four national teams to move from Celaya to León.
In Celaya, the matches of group A were to be held, consisting of the teams from Costa Rica, Cuba, Jamaica, and the United States. The quarter-finals, one semi-final match, and the final were also scheduled to take place there.
The last one is scheduled for August 4 and will now be held at the Sergio León Chávez stadium in the city of Irapuato.
The Mexican Football Federation shared the updated match schedule.
The regional qualifier for the Under-20 World Cup began on July 19 with the participation of 12 teams.
The shooting that disrupted the event
Everything changed when a police officer died and another was seriously injured during a shooting that broke out right in front of the hotel where the teams from Cuba and Costa Rica were staying.
The incident occurred this Wednesday before 9:00 a.m. in front of the renowned Hotel Casa Inn Celaya Veleros.
Elements of the General Directorate of Traffic and Road Police were conducting surveillance at the hotel before picking up the athletes and transporting them to the stadium where the tournament is taking place. While they were waiting in the parking lot, they were shot at from several points by heavily armed individuals who fled on motorcycles.
Although they repelled the attack, two officers were injured. They were taken to the hospital immediately, but it was reported shortly after that one of them died.
Members of the Municipal Police, the National Guard, and the Mexican Army arrived and set up a perimeter around the site to preserve the evidence.
It was reported that the bursts hit two vehicles of the Traffic Police, as well as a bus that was transporting the athletes.
At this moment, the operation to capture the aggressors is ongoing.
Celaya is the most dangerous municipality for police officers in Guanajuato. So far this year, 18 have been killed, out of a total of 40 officers murdered throughout the state.
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