Ticket holders for what was supposed to be a soccer match between Argentina and Puerto Rico at Soldier Field are at a loss after learning on Wednesday that the game will now be played in Florida.
Soldier Field said the decision to move the match, which was promoted across the Chicagoland area for months, was due to low ticket sales in Chicago. However, an executive for the Argentine Football Association said it’s due to the detainments and the arrival of the National Guard.
Samantha bought tickets for the match for her 9-year-old son, Karia, who is obsessed with soccer and was looking forward to seeing one of his idols.
“I was like, oh my God, this is Argentina, Messi will be at this, my son is going to lose his mind,” she said.
But when she found out the match was moved to Florida for immigration reasons, she said she was upset.
“Super disappointing but also very disheartening to even consider that it was potentially canceled for that reason,” she said.
“We were all heartbroken,” Billy Ocasio said.
Billy Ocasio, who is the executive director of the National Museum of Puerto Rican Arts and Culture, said for months they had plans to welcome the Puerto Rican national team to the museum on Sunday. That’s now canceled, and he blames the Trump administration.
“What I think is happening here is President Trump has attempted to impose economic sanctions on the city of Chicago for being a sanctuary city,” he said.
“I’m definitely concerned about spectators. I’m even concerned about runners,” Britt Villablobos said.
Runners in this weekend’s Bank of America Chicago Marathon said they, too, are nervous about ICE operations taking place during the event.
Mayor Brandon Johnson touched on those concerns during a press conference this week.
“We’ve gotten word that roughly 3,000 runners from Mexico have signed up for this marathon, and I want all of them to come,” he said. “I believe the best way in which we can demonstrate resistance is not bending to tyranny.”
The Chicago Park District, in an Instagram post, said it did not receive any information about federal agents being at the marathon.
As for the soccer match, Ocasio said overall, this is a huge loss.
“This was the first time that Puerto Rico was coming to Chicago and the first time facing Argentina with Messi playing,” he said.
CBS News Chicago reached out to the Chicago Marathon to see if they are preparing in case federal agents appear at the marathon, as well as the Department of Homeland Security, but has yet to hear back from either.
