Drone Shot Down Over South Korea's Training in Mexico; Suspects Flee

An unauthorized drone disrupted a closed-door training session of the South Korean national football team in Mexico, leading to a swift response from Mexican military personnel. The incident occurred on June 16 (local time) at the Chivas Valle Verde training ground in Safopán, near Guadalajara, where coach Hong Myung-bo's team was preparing for their second group match in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.

The team was conducting a completely private training session, with no media access, ahead of their crucial match against Mexico on June 19. During the session, a drone was spotted flying over the stadium. Security personnel immediately alerted the Mexican military, who activated signal jamming equipment to bring the drone down.

Following the drone's crash, team security personnel and local military and police moved to secure the wreckage. However, two foreign men, suspected to be the drone operators, reportedly grabbed the downed device and fled the scene before their identities could be confirmed. The South Korean team has filed a complaint with the Mexican police and also informed FIFA, requesting cooperation to prevent future occurrences.

A team official stated that the tactical information was not compromised. Local authorities have launched an investigation to identify the two foreign men, and the team is awaiting feedback from the police and FIFA regarding the matter.

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Fortunately, there was no tactical exposure.