Anti-FIFA Challenge: Football Defends the Territory
This article by Auri Arroyo originally appeared in the March 2, 2026 edition of Des Informémonos.
Mexico City. Residents of Santa Úrsula Coapa held the Anti-World Cup Days in front of the Azteca Stadium, where they denounced water theft and gentrification that they warned have intensified in the lead-up to the 2026 World Cup.
The day began in the town’s streets, with protest banners and slogans like “Total boycott of the World Cup” and “We want housing, we don’t give a damn about the World Cup.” During the demonstration, participants invited local residents to join the movement with phrases like “A conscious neighbour joins the contingent.”
As part of the event, Anti-FIFA Pick-Up Games were held on Calzada de Tlalpan, where an improvised pitch was painted for small soccer matches in front of the stadium. The players said they appropriated the sport as a form of protest and defense of their territory.
Through football, the participants condemned the expansion of tourism, which, they warned, threatens the displacement of communities and the commodification of their land. “We will not allow the continued commodification of the territory of Indigenous peoples,” they declared.
In Mexico, the Azteca Stadium will be the main venue for the 2026 World Cup, an event that has generated expectations of increased tourism and real estate development in the southern part of the capital. Residents argue that these transformations prioritize economic interests over the right to water, housing, and the right to remain in their communities.
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