Soccer fan files lawsuit against Hard Rock Stadium following Copa America chaos
By SHELDON FOX, KEVIN BOULANDIER
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MIAMI, Florida (WSVN) — A local soccer fan is filing a lawsuit against Hard Rock Stadium after she was injured when fans stormed the gates of the arena.
Isabel Quintero and her father were excited to attend the Copa America Final on Sunday to cheer on their home country of Colombia.
But when they arrived at the stadium, they were met with chaos.
“I never thought, it never crossed my mind that something so horrible could happen to us,” said Quintero.
Quintero said she was bruised and suffered other injuries up and down her body as she and her dad were caught in a wave of people that stampeded their way into the arena gates on Sunday.
“When people started to push, you go in!” Quintero said. “I crashed against that pole.”
Her father was OK and she was able to shake off the pain.
“I really thought either they were gonna break my arm or they’re gonna break my leg,” said Quintero.
Both of them eventually were able to enter the stadium to watch the game, despite being shaken, hurt, and in awe.
“There were people passing out, they were kids screaming. It was just horrible. It’s not the type of situation you expect when you pay thousands of dollars,” said Quintero.
Now, Quintero and her attorney are suing the stadium and those who promoted and organized the Copa America Final.
“Negligent, security, poor planning, systemic failures and multiple, multiple victims,” said attorney Judd Rosen. “It turned into just a disaster. The stampede, the power of thousands of people pushing against her as she tried to lawfully enter the stadium with the ticket that she paid for.”
“This lawsuit is about making sure this doesn’t happen again,” said attorney Chris Salado.
“Nothing compares to what happened here. There was just not enough staff. It turned into a disaster,” said Quintero.
The law firm, Goldberg and Rosen, believe this is the first of several lawsuits that will be filed following the epic security failure that took place at Hard Rock Stadium.
Earlier this week, Miami-Dade County said they were looking at how to make security improvements since the Hard Rock is hosting the World Cup Games in 2026.
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