• Live
    • Audio Only
  • google plus
  • facebook
  • twitter
News > Newsletter

NFL Scared to Let Players out of Their Rooms in Mexico City

  • Houston Texans quarterback Brock Osweiler (17) drops back to pass against the Denver Broncos at Sports Authority Field.

    Houston Texans quarterback Brock Osweiler (17) drops back to pass against the Denver Broncos at Sports Authority Field. | Photo: Reuters-USA Today Sports

Published 17 November 2016
Opinion

The Houston Texans will take on the Oakland Raiders in Mexico City as part of the NFL's international series.

Mexico City is set to host its first regular season NFL game in over a decade on Monday but it seems the league officials have heard one too many horror stories about the country as they've issued a series of recommendations to players traveling to the capital, including advice that they not leave their hotel.

RELATED:
Kaepernick Says Voting in US Elections Is Nod to 'Oppression'

The Associated Press obtained a memo distributed to Houston Texan players that included a series of “safety” and “health” recommendations, which told players to stay in the hotel, leave jewelry at home, not use ATMs, and even avoid calling room service.

These kinds of warnings are usually met with derision by Mexicans.

Mexico City has largely been spared from the ongoing drug-related violence affecting other regions of the country and its murder rate is comparable to many metropolitan cities in the United States. The capital also has one of the highest police to resident ratios in the world. Players are also likely to be put up in city's finest hotels, located in safe areas of the Mexico City.

Tickets for the game, the first in Mexico since 2005, sold out in less than an hour. The game between the Houston Texans and the Oakland Raiders will take place Monday at the legendary Estadio Azteca, one of the largest sports venues in the world.

RELATED:
US Singer Kneels While Performing National Anthem at NBA Game

American football is one of the most popular sports in Mexico, coming second only to soccer.

However, a report from USA Today said that the ongoing controversy over U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's comments regarding Mexicans is likely to produce a backlash at the game.

The report said that fans are planning to boo during the playing of the U.S. national anthem as an act of protest. During soccer matches between the U.S. men's national team and their Mexican counterparts, fans will often raucously boo the U.S. anthem.

The U.S. anthem is already the focal point of protest, with 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick protesting police brutality against Black people and other people of color by refusing to stand during the playing of the U.S. national anthem.

Comment
0
Comments
Post with no comments.