Armed attacks and criminal clashes challenge athletes, football under constant threat

Ecuadorian professional footballer Jonathan González, 31, was killed in an armed attack, shocking the country’s sports world. This is the third case of a footballer being murdered in Ecuador in September alone, following the deaths of Maicol Valencia and Leandro Yépez, players of the second-division team Exapromo Costa, on September 10.

Jonathan González, a member of the 22 de Julio team in the Second Division, suffered severe gunshot wounds during the attack at a house in the coastal province of Esmeraldas, near the Colombian border — an area affected by violent clashes between drug trafficking gangs. Another victim, still unidentified, died while being transported to the hospital.

The Exapromo Costa club, which lost two footballers in the previous attack, stated that they were collateral victims and not the main targets of the assault. This raises concerns about the safety of players and the environment in which they operate.

In Ecuador, the security situation has worsened significantly in recent years, with a sharp increase in homicide rates from 6 per 100,000 inhabitants in 2018 to 38 in 2024, and a record of 47 per 100,000 inhabitants in 2023. The country, once considered a relatively safe haven between Colombia and Peru — two of the world’s largest cocaine producers — is now facing serious challenges from criminal gangs and drug trafficking.

These shocking events raise major questions about safety in Ecuadorian sports and the impact of organized crime on the daily lives of citizens and athletes.

“KORÇA BOOM”