Football
Tom Marshall, Mexico correspondent 7y

No bomb found after Costa Rican top-flight match evacuated on threat

SAN JOSE, Costa Rica -- A football stadium in Costa Rica was evacuated due to a bomb threat -- which was later confirmed to be without merit -- during a first-division game in the country's capital of San Jose on Sunday.

Saprissa was leading 6-1 with five minutes to go when the referee stopped the match after an anonymous phone call warned of a bomb inside the stadium, according to reports in the Costa Rican press.

Around 12,000 fans were evacuated rapidly and the players left the field to take shelter, some in a parking lot outside the stadium.

"A bomb threat was received at the stadium," said Jose Pablo Molina, press chief for the union of Costa Rican clubs (UNAFUT). "Saprissa activated the security protocols and quickly evacuated the stadium. We couldn't be irresponsible and continue a game after a threat that we don't know is true or not."

Costa Rica's public security ministry confirmed to El Desmarque that it is the first time there has been a bomb threat in a stadium in the country and said that police are inspecting the area.

The possibility of a bomb in the stadium was ruled out by Costa Rica's minister of public security Gustavo Mata later Sunday after a search of the installations with sniffer dogs. 

The threat comes two days before Costa Rica hosts Mexico in World Cup qualifying at the nearby Estadio Nacional, with 35,000 expected to attend.

Mata tweeted that he had ordered increased security for Tuesday's match, while the game between Saprissa and Grecia will be completed on Monday.

^ Back to Top ^