Mexican authorities cancel Ricky Martin concert

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Authorities in a state in central Mexico, where two weeks ago violent incidents occurred during a football match that left dozens injured, canceled a Ricky Martin concert Friday night claiming that security requirements were not met.

The suspension of the Puerto Rican singer's show came a few hours before the start of the show at the Juriquilla Equestrian Club in Querétaro, where thousands of fans of the artist went who retired upset after the untimely cancellation.

Around midnight, Civil Protection of Querétaro announced in a video, which it shared on Twitter, that the cancellation of the event occurred after it was found “the lack of compliance with security measures for civil protection”, in particular in the logistics and operations processes.

The show was part of the “Movimiento Tour” tour that Martin started this month through several cities in Mexico, which included the Mexican capital, Monterrey, Guadalajara and Veracruz.

After the suspension of the show in Querétaro on the artist's social networks, it was reported that the show that Martin planned to perform in the capital of the central state of Zacatecas on March 20 was also canceled due to “circumstances completely alien to the artist and his work team”.

In the central city of Querétaro, a violent incident occurred on March 5 during a match for the Clausura tournament that was interrupted after 62 minutes when fans entered the field seeking to get away from the fight between the bars of the Queretaro and Atlas teams.

The pitched battle that took place at La Corregidora stadium between football fans, which left 26 injured, sparked great controversy and strong questions about the security measures followed in Mexican stadiums during sporting and mass events.

After the violent incident, the authorities arrested 27 people for alleged responsibility for the attacks on fans, and the director of the state police was dismissed.

The Disciplinary Commission of the Mexican Football Federation agreed that the Queretaro team must play their home matches without an audience for a year, while its fans will not be able to attend the visitor duels for three years. In addition, the Disciplinary Commission disqualified the leaders of the Querétaro club for five years from any sporting activity in Mexico.