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Four professional soccer matches in Mexico were postponed Sunday after violence broke out near Guadalajara, one of the host cities of the 2026 World Cup, in the wake of a military operation that left cartel leader Nemesio Oseguera, known as “El Mencho,” dead.
Liga MX officials removed two top-flight matches from the schedule – Querétaro’s matchup against Juárez FC in the men’s league and the women’s matchup between Chivas and América – and also canceled two second-division matches amid safety concerns.
The outage occurred after operations earlier that day in Tapalpa, Jalisco, approximately two hours southwest of Guadalajara. Mexican authorities said Oseguera, a former police officer who went on to lead the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), was killed during the operation.
Vehicles were subsequently set on fire and roads blocked in nearly a dozen Mexican states, according to officials.
IMPORTANT DRUG TRAFFICKER ‘EL MENCHO’ KILLED IN MEXICAN MILITARY OPERATION WITH US INTELLIGENCE SUPPORT
The vehicles pass by a burning bus used as a checkpoint by organized crime after a federal operation in which Mexican drug trafficker Nemesio Oseguera, commonly known as “El Mencho,” was murdered. (Gabriel Trujillo/Reuters)
Guadalajara, the capital of Jalisco state, is scheduled to host four matches during the 2026 World Cup, including two involving South Korea. Mexico, Spain, Uruguay and Colombia also plan to play at the venue.
The Mexican team will continue to host Iceland in a friendly on Wednesday at the Corregidora Stadium in Querétaro. As of Sunday, the Mexican soccer federation had not announced any changes for that match.
Not all sporting events were affected. Organizers of the Mexican Open in Acapulco said the ATP tournament would begin on Monday at the GNP Arena as planned.
“The operation of the tournament continues as normal,” tournament organizers said in a statement.
Oseguera had received a reward of 15 million US dollars and rose to fame after the arrest of Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, former head of the Sinaloa Cartel. Over the past decade and a half, the CJNG has grown from a regional criminal group to a global trafficking network operating across much of Mexico from its stronghold in Jalisco.
A burned vehicle used as a barricade by members of organized crime, after a series of arrests by federal forces, located in Guadalajara, Mexico. (Michelle Freyria/Reuters)
“I have just been informed that Mexican security forces have killed ‘El Mencho’, one of the most bloodthirsty and ruthless drug traffickers,” said US Undersecretary of State Christopher Landau in a post on
Mexico’s Defense Department said the operation was carried out as part of bilateral coordination and cooperation with the United States, and that US authorities provided complementary intelligence that contributed to the killing of El Mencho.
After El Mencho’s death, cartel members burned cars and blocked roads in nearly a dozen Mexican states.
MEXICAN SPA TOURISTS WERE TOLD TO STAY AT RESORT AS GOVERNMENT WARNS OF ‘Clashes’
A soldier stands guard next to a loaded vehicle after it was set on fire, in Cointzio, Michoacán state, Mexico. (AP Photo/Armando Solis)
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The Jalisco New Generation Cartel is considered the most powerful cartel in Mexico, with approximately 19,000 members and operations in 21 of the country’s 32 states.
The Trump administration designated the cartel a foreign terrorist organization.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.