2026 will be remembered in Mexico for several reasons. One, scheduled, is the celebration of the world cup. The other, unforeseen, is death this sunday of Nemesio Oseguera, alias ‘El Mencho’, one of the most important names in international drug trafficking. The unknown now is to what extent both events will overlap and if the second will influence the first in some way. It is not a question that we ask ourselves, but a murmur that is beginning to sound in the sports press around the world, from the United States either South Korea.
The reason is very simple: the same country that in the last few hours has postponed matches due to the violence unleashed by the death of ‘El Mencho’ will have to host national teams that will compete in the World Cup in four months.
What has happened? That the fight against drug trafficking has written a key chapter in Mexico. An operation orchestrated by the Mexican army with the support of US intelligence ended on Sunday with the death of Nemensio Rubén Osegeuera‘El Mencho’, leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG).
The news is important for several reasons. First, due to the relevance of the protagonist, ‘El Mencho’, who, as detailed by the Secretariat of National Defense, died while being transferred (already injured) to Mexico City.
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And who was it? Despite having maintained a low profile and low visibility, Mencho had managed to become one of the most relevant leaders of American drug trafficking. Also one of the most sought after in the world. The US even offered 15 million dollars to whoever facilitated his arrest.
The reason is the reach of the CJNG, an organization with diversified businesses, tentacles throughout Mexico (and part of the US) and a power that has already demonstrated in several occasionswhether executing judges and high officials or even shooting down helicopters with cannon fire. For the Government of Donald Trump ‘El Mencho’ was also “one of the main traffickers of fentanyl” from America.
Has it had repercussions? Yes. And that is the second reason why Oseguera’s death is so relevant. The operation deployed on Sunday in the mountains of Jalisco has triggered an earthquake that has spread through Mexico with roads closed and episodes of violence that, for example, have led to a dozen of States to suspend their school classes and have affected part of the country’s air traffic, with the cancellation of hundreds of flights. The Mexican newspaper The Financier speak directly of “a wave of violence.”
The local and international press inform of blockades and attacks on businesses in Jalisco and other Mexican states and the authorities have identified more than 252 roads with cuts in twenty regions, although they guarantee that 90% have already been resolved. That has not prevented Canada or the United States have advised its citizens to avoid going out in certain areas.
Has it affected anything else? Yes. Beyond traffic, logistics, education or commerce, the tumults unleashed in certain parts of Mexico by the death of ‘El Mencho’ have been felt on two fronts. One is tourism. As reports the BBCthe Puerto Vallarta airport has suffered cancellations and diversions, a relevant fact considering that it is one of the most popular destinations in the country. Added to this are messages from Canada and the United States, but also from nations such as the United Kingdom, Australia or New Zealand, asking their citizens for caution.
Another front that has not been immune is sports. Especially football. After what happened yesterday, at least two matches of first level. One was the women’s classic between Guadalajara and América, which was to be played at the Akron stadium (Zapopan). The other, the scheduled match between Querétaro and Juárez, from Liga MX, in the state of La Corregidora (Querétaro).
Is that important? That the violent reactions to the death of ‘El Mencho’ affect tourism and (above all) the football agenda could seem like a minor issue if it were not for the fact that 2026 is not just any year for Mexico. In a few months the country will become, along with the US and Canada, World Cup host.
In fact, the stadium where Querétaro and Juárez were due to meet yesterday will soon host a friendly match between the Mexican team and Iceland. The Akron stadium (the same one where Guadalajara and América should have played) will also be the scene this summer of several events in which teams from Korea, Colombia, Uruguay and Spain will participate.
Can it influence? Of course the coincidence has not gone unnoticed. In Spain, sports media such as BRAND either ACEbut they are not the only ones. The South Korean media The Chosun had an impact in the last hours on the same idea and reporter Ephrat Livini slid in your analysis of what happened to The New York Times (TNYT) a key fact: “Much of the violence occurred in Guadalajara, a center of 1.4 million inhabitants that is home to the World Cup.”
The problem is not only the violence unleashed in the last few hours. The key is what happens from now on and the multiple scenarios that are opening, among which includes a possible internal war within the CJNG to succeed the fallen boss or an offensive by rival cartels to dispute his territories. A few days ago (before the death of ‘El Mencho’) the newspaper The Time revealed since Mexico has redoubled its vigilance against the possibility that, taking advantage of the World Cup, Colombian drug traffickers may enter the country posing as fans.
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