Mexican authorities are on high alert to prevent Colombians working with drug cartels from using the upcoming World Cup to enter the country.

Mexican authorities are on high alert to prevent Colombians working with drug cartels from using the upcoming World Cup to enter the country, an official from the state of Jalisco, which will host matches, said Thursday.

Mexican authorities are on high alert to prevent Colombians working with drug cartels from using the upcoming World Cup to enter the country, an official from the state of Jalisco, which will host matches, said Thursday.

"We have already sent back to their country some Colombian citizens who could not justify the reasons for their presence" in Jalisco (west), said Roberto Alarcon, general strategic coordinator of state security.

Growing involvement of former Colombian military personnel

In Jalisco, where matches will be held, "there have already been people who came to be recruited by one of the cartels," he stated, while the country's authorities are observing a growing involvement of ex-military foreigners, particularly Colombians, in Mexican cartels.

Foreigners who work with these criminal groups "will of course take advantage of tourist packages and anything else that will allow them to infiltrate" this region of Mexico, added Roberto Alarcon.

Last June, the Mexican army arrested ten former Colombian soldiers during an operation in the neighboring state of Michoacan, after an explosion that killed six Mexican soldiers.

According to experts, the disarmament in 2017 of the FARC guerrillas (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia) and the reduction of the army budget in Colombia have facilitated the arrival of ex-guerrillas and former military personnel from that country in criminal groups in Mexico.

2000 cameras, drones…

The city of Guadalajara, capital of the state of Jalisco, is preparing to receive tens of thousands of visitors from different backgrounds, with more than 2,000 surveillance cameras, drones and equipment to combat unmanned aerial vehicles in order to guarantee security during the 2026 World Cup.

The World Cup is being hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico and will take place from June 11 to July 19.

"We are of course using all the necessary equipment, from motor vehicles to drones, including anti-drone systems to cover the airspace, as well as helicopters from the institutions with which we will be working," the official said.

In the metropolitan area of this city, the second largest in Mexico with 3.5 million inhabitants, lies the Guadalajara stadium, with a capacity of approximately 48,000 spectators. It will host four World Cup matches.