Two Mexicos: World Cup Joy Meets Cartel Fear

Mexico City's fan zones roar with 100,000 fans. A thousand kilometers north in Culiacán, restaurants empty the moment matches end—people 'run home' to escape cartel shootouts. This is Mexico's World Cup in 2025: one tournament, two realities.

The Split Screen

• Host cities celebrating3
• States with daily cartel shootingsMultiple
• Jobs lost in Sinaloa from cartel war~60,000
• Security forces deployed nationwide100,000+
• Daily homicides (June average)39
• Journalists killed near Poza Rica this year2

The Tournament Mexico City Sees

Since June 11, Mexico's three host cities—Mexico City, Guadalajara, and Monterrey—have transformed into open-air parties. Giant screens light up plazas. Thousands pack fan zones draped in green, white, and red. When Mexico beat South Korea, Juan Pablo de los Santos joined a crowd of thousands in the capital, celebrating a victory that felt, he said, like a reprieve from 'very painful and humanitarian disastrous events.'

President Claudia Sheinbaum calls the atmosphere 'super happy,' framing the tournament as Mexico sending the world a message of 'joy, happiness and excitement.' U.S. Ambassador Ronald Johnson praised the collaboration that made it possible, highlighting the massive security deployment. For millions in these cities, the World Cup is exactly what it's supposed to be: a unifying spectacle, a moment to forget everything else.

The Tournament Culiacán Survives

In Culiacán—capital of Sinaloa, 645 miles from Mexico City—the World Cup feels like it's happening in another country. Rival factions of the Sinaloa Cartel have waged a nearly two-year war here, shuttering businesses and killing dreams alongside people. José Miguel Taniyama, a chef and restaurant owner, hoped the tournament would revive sales. For Mexico's opener against South Africa, just two tables were occupied when kickoff came.

'Business has been slow,' Taniyama said. A few more showed up for later matches, but not the crowds he needed. And the pattern held: the moment the final whistle blows, 'people run home' to avoid the violence that picks up after dark.

The economic damage is staggering. Official figures put job losses in Sinaloa at nearly 60,000 over two years. Restaurants, bars, and shops that once thrived on game-day crowds now sit half-empty or closed. The few pubs still showing matches offer a fragile haven—two hours to pretend life is normal, then a sprint back to safety.

Watching Football Under Drone Strikes

In Michoacan, one of Mexico's most cartel-dense states, a lime grower spoke to the Associated Press on condition of anonymity—speaking openly invites reprisals. During a recent World Cup match, he said, local cartels were launching explosives from drones at a nearby ranch. 'I really like football, but we're nervous,' he said.

'In previous years, people would get together to watch the games and place bets. Not anymore. There's no party here, there's only exhaustion.'

In Uruapan—the Michoacan city whose mayor was assassinated eight months ago—hundreds of young people did venture out after Mexico's win over South Korea, emboldened by visible security forces. María Luisa García, 19, admitted she thought it was too dangerous, 'but to see some people going out gave me confidence.' Juan Carlos Mora, a local berry farmer, was less optimistic: 'Youngsters keep throwing themselves in risky situations. They know that eventually one of them will get caught up in trouble and will probably die, but they like to party. Every day it's the same thing: today it just wasn't my turn, tomorrow, who knows?'

Empty Streets in the Gulf

On the Gulf of Mexico coast, Poza Rica has seen cartel violence intensify recently. After Mexico faced North Korea on June 18, the streets were deserted. 'No one went out to celebrate,' said Guillermo Núñez, a 28-year-old business owner and local soccer player, who walked a friend home after watching the match together.

The post-game celebrations that once defined big matches have vanished. Two journalists were killed near Núñez's home this year. 'The violence has stolen even the desire to go out and watch soccer,' he said. Many people he knows are changing their routines, avoiding nights out entirely.

In Tamaulipas, where cells of the Gulf Cartel, Los Zetas factions, and the Jalisco New Generation Cartel operate, residents have developed a grim baseline for normalcy. A woman in Miguel Alemán, a small border town next to Texas, said things are 'improving' because shootings no longer last for hours—'just a while.' Neighbors can now sit on their doorsteps and talk, she said, something impossible months ago when criminal groups would abduct anyone visible on the street. She asked for anonymity out of security concerns.

In Matamoros, next to Brownsville, Texas, maquila worker Josías Ramírez noted a temporary truce of sorts: 'People involved in organized crime sit down to watch soccer so things calm down a bit.' But he added, 'The fear is ever-present because we live in a border society where crimes continue to happen in broad daylight.'

The Numbers Tell Part of the Story

Sheinbaum's administration points to a decline in homicides since she took office in October 2024. Updated government figures show an average of 50.4 homicides per day from January through May—the lowest rate for that period in a decade. In June, the daily average dropped further to 39.

Few dispute the improvement. But analysts note that people continue to disappear, and violence remains acute in several regions despite the falling death toll. The numbers capture killings, not the pervasive fear, the economic collapse, or the lives rearranged around avoiding the wrong street at the wrong time.

And for residents in cartel zones, statistics don't change the daily calculus. As the lime grower in Michoacan put it: exhaustion, not celebration, is what defines life here—World Cup or not.

FAQ

These states are home to some of Mexico's most powerful criminal organizations, including rival factions of the Sinaloa Cartel and multiple groups operating in Michoacan. They're fighting over drug trafficking routes, territory, and control of local economies. In Sinaloa, a nearly two-year internal war has killed thousands and devastated the economy, with nearly 60,000 jobs lost according to official figures.

Homicide rates have declined—averaging 39 per day in June 2025, the lowest in over a decade for that time of year. But disappearances continue, and violence remains intense in several regions. Analysts say the lower death toll doesn't capture the full picture: businesses closing, people staying indoors, and communities living in constant fear.

Mexico City, Guadalajara, and Monterrey have large security deployments and have seen vibrant, open celebrations throughout the tournament. Over 100,000 security forces were deployed nationwide. The violence affecting daily life in places like Culiacán, Uruapan, and Poza Rica is geographically distant from the main host cities and fan zones.

Several residents noted that even cartel members watch the games, creating brief windows of relative calm. But as soon as matches end, the fear returns—people 'run home' to avoid being caught in shootouts or abductions that resume after dark.