October 15 – A wave of political unrest in Ecuador has spilled over into football with world players’ union FIFPro calling for the women’s Copa Libertadores to be called off.
Conmebol, who postponed four fixtures on Saturday, say they are monitoring the situation but had not yet made a decision on whether the entire tournament, which began on Friday and is due to run until October 27, could continue.
“Players from several clubs have contacted us saying they fear for their safety,” FIFPro said in a short statement posted on Twitter.\
Featuring 16 teams from across South America, the tournament is being played across two stadiums in Quito, where armoured military vehicles patrolled the streets on Sunday after police and protesters continued to clash in the worst civil unrest for more than a decade.
At least seven people have been killed, several hundred wounded and more than 1,000 people arrested in protests that began on October 3 after the government cut fuel subsidies.
Four matches were played on Friday’s opening day of the tournament but four more were called off 24 hours later. With no games scheduled for Sunday, the next four ties are due to be played later Tuesday.
Contact the writer of this story at andrew.warshaw@insideworldfootball,com