More lawsuits have been filed related to the chaos at the Copa America final at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens. NBC6’s Jamie Guirola reports
More lawsuits have been filed related to the chaos at the Copa America final at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens on Sunday.
More than two dozen people were arrested and the game between Argentina and Colombia was delayed for over an hour when out-of-control crowds breached security gates at the stadium.
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A class action lawsuit was filed Friday against Hard Rock Stadium and soccer organizations CONMEBOL and CONCACAF on behalf of Das Nobel and other fans who were denied entry to the match.
"This Complaint seeks redress for a class of invitee fans who paid money to attend the Copa America Final football match between Argentine and Columbia (“Final Match”) at Hard Rock Stadium but were denied entry because of Defendants’ failure to implement adequate security protocols that resulted in mass chaos, injuries, and ultimately, the Defendants’ decision to open the stadium to thousands of unticketed fans and to exclude ticketed invitee fans like Plaintiff and the Class Members," the suit states.
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Nobel spoke with NBC6 after the game, saying he traveled to Miami from Dallas with his family and spent around $7,000 on tickets.
“And we watched hundreds of other families with kids that are stranded with tickets. And we saw that multiple times, people were let in without going through security check, let alone the ticketing check. So it put a lot of the people in danger within the stadium,” Nobel said.
Another lawsuit filed Wednesday on behalf of three people claims they were denied entry to the event despite having valid tickets when a large crowd started rushing the venue.
COPA AMERICA CHAOS
The plaintiffs - Marta Pintos, Eduardo Martinez and Nicolas Osorio - filed the suit against Hard Rock Stadium and CONMEBOL, saying they suffered monetary loss, emotional distress and other damages.
"The unlawful entry of individuals into the arena was a foreseeable consequence of Defendants’ failure to implement adequate crowd control measures, security protocols, and ticket verification processes," the suit claims.
A similar lawsuit was filed Monday against the stadium and CONMEBOL by fan Jackie Martinez.
"The defendants failed to provide a safe and secure environment for ticket holders, thereby engaging in deceptive and unfair trade practices," Martinez's suit states.
Yet another lawsuit was filed Thursday by Isabel Quintero, claiming she "suffered severe injuries" when she was denied entry to the game and was "pushed, trampled, and slammed into objects as a result of the Defendants complete disregard for safety of its invitees."
All of the individual lawsuits seek damages in excess of $50,000.
CONMEBOL released a statement on Friday regarding fan refunds.
“Fans who purchased tickets on the primary market and were denied entry to the match are encouraged to reach out to Ticketmaster to request a refund. Ticketmaster will take the claim and provide next steps to the customer," the statement read. "Fans who purchased tickets on the secondary market should direct their refund request to the entity from which they purchased.”
In a statement released on X the day of the match, Hard Rock Stadium representatives wrote they would work “in partnership with CONMEBOL to address individual concerns."
But CONMEBOL pointed the finger at Hard Rock Stadium in a recent statement, stating in part that they were “subject to the decision made by Hard Rock Stadium authorities” and that preparation recommendations made to Hard Rock authorities “were not taken into account.”
Hard Rock Stadium representatives denied these allegations in a statement released Tuesday, writing they implemented and exceeded CONMEBOL’s security recommendations.
