Mexican authorities are moving to block Colombians suspected of links to local cartels from exploiting the upcoming World Cup to enter the country, a senior security official in Jalisco, one of the host states, told Agence France-Presse (AFP) on Thursday.
Roberto Alarcón, Jalisco’s general coordinator for strategic security, said officials are concerned that some arrivals are seeking recruitment by criminal groups, pointing to what he described as a rising pattern of former Colombian soldiers and ex-guerrillas joining organized crime networks in Mexico.
He said security agencies have already denied entry to several Colombians who were unable to justify their travel plans clearly and warned that others could attempt to enter Jalisco under the guise of tourist packages as the tournament draws closer.
The state capital, Guadalajara, is "unfortunately a place of interest for certain criminals who try to do their business here,” Alarcón added.
The participation of foreign ex-fighters has grown in recent years, he said, with cartels and militias seeking recruits who bring military training and experience from Colombia’s long conflict with guerrilla groups.
Last June, the Mexican army detained 10 former Colombian soldiers in neighboring Michoacán after a land mine blast killed six Mexican soldiers, a case officials say shows the scale of the recruitment trend.
Experts say the 2017 demobilization of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia and shrinking military budgets in Bogotá have pushed ex-fighters abroad in search of work, including with Mexico’s criminal groups.
Colombian mercenaries have been sought by militias and crime groups around the world for their combat experience against leftist guerrillas. For more than a decade, they have been documented working as mercenaries in conflicts in Ukraine, Afghanistan, Yemen, Iraq and Sudan.
In Mexico, where most Colombians have fought in Michoacán, several hours from Guadalajara, authorities have dismantled Colombian mercenary cells dedicated to building bombs dropped from drones purchased online.
Guadalajara, a 2026 World Cup host city and the capital of Jalisco, is preparing with more than 2,000 surveillance cameras, drones and anti-drone teams, along with air and ground units, to secure matches during the tournament, which kicks off in June.
The city has a significantly higher number of missing persons and clandestine graves than other urban centers such as Monterrey and Mexico City.
Jalisco’s capital, whose population of 3.5 million makes it the second-largest city in Mexico, is preparing to receive tens of thousands of visitors from around the world for the quadrennial tournament.
The Guadalajara Stadium can hold up to 48,000 fans.
Guadalajara will host four World Cup matches, including Mexico’s second group-stage game on June 18 against South Korea.