CNN
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An Argentine soccer fan has died in an abandoned Liga Profesional match between Gimnasia La Plata and Boca Juniors on Thursday at the Juan Carmelo Zerillo stadium in La Plata, Buenos Aires. The supporter was named Cesar Regueiro by Gimnasia, the home side.
The cause of the supporter’s death is unclear, but Sergio Berni, security minister for the province of Buenos Aires, told local television that the supporter died of a heart problem as he left the stadium. stadium, Reuters reported.
The match between Gimnasia and provincial rivals Boca was abandoned by referee Hernán Mastrángelo after nine minutes due to unrest around the stadium between security forces and fans, with tear gas used by the authorities.
Gimnasia, Boca Juniors, La Liga Profesional and the Argentine Football Association (AFA) – the sport’s governing body in the country – issued statements on their verified Twitter accounts condemning the incident and offering their condolences to the family and to those close to Regueiro.
Gimnasia’s statement also demanded an investigation into the incident to find out what caused the tragedy.
Gimnasia then published a other statement on their social media accounts, which castigates the excessive use of force by the security forces at and around the stadium entrances and claims that the club and its supporters have followed the entry protocols established and organized with the provincial police of Buenos Aires and APREVIDE, the Ministry of Security in Buenos Aires.
The club also said in the same statement that they did not oversell any tickets for the game.
Provincial Security Minister Berni told CNN affiliate TN: “What always happens has happened.
“They sell more tickets than the capacity of the room and there is no place in the stadiums. Then we must take responsibility for such irresponsibility.
CNN en Español contacted the Buenos Aires Provincial Police, which did not issue a statement.
The death comes days after a stadium crash in Indonesia that left at least 131 people dead. The fatal crash happened after police fired tear gas to disperse a crowd that had stormed the pitch.
