Two England fans who attended the World Cup in Mexico City have issued a chilling warning to supporters travelling to the country for the Three Lions' round of 16 clash, describing a 'terrifying experience' at an official FanFest.
Couple's Horrifying Ordeal
Jo Lewis and her partner Gary Taylor, from Harold Wood, Essex, said their visit to the FanFest in the capital was a horrendous few hours. Jo feared for her life, and Gary, who has attended hundreds of Spurs and England matches, said: 'Mexico City was the worst - 100 percent the worst experience of all the matches I've ever been.'
The couple spoke out after it was revealed three Mexicans suffocated and died during wild celebrations following their team's win over Ecuador. More than one million fans took to the streets, leading to severe crushing.
Chaotic Scenes at FanFest
Jo and Gary visited Mexico City for the opening game last month before heading to Dallas. They described chaotic scenes at the FanFest, where policing, security and organisation were severely lacking compared with the United States.
Jo, 44, who works in logistics for an oil and gas company, said: 'People with children, with babies were all getting crushed. It was terrible. No-one cared. People getting crushed everywhere. It took us four hours to get into the fanzone. I was swept in on a surge of grown adults into a small doorway area - my feet weren't even on the floor - and I couldn't see Gary, and I started to panic. We weren't together and that was petrifying for me. This was the worst experience of my life. My hands were trembling for at least an hour afterwards.'
Massive Queues and Single Entrance
Gary, 64, an estate agent, added: 'We went together to Mexico to see the Azteca stadium and to experience the Mexican fans. We arrived in the main square, and there was so many people. It was chaotic. There must have been a two or three mile queue just to get to the fanzone. There was just one entrance which was, perhaps, the size of two double garage doors. It was frightening. Literally 10,000 people squeezing though that gap. It was madness absolute madness.'
Warning to England Fans
The couple said they wanted all England fans travelling down to Mexico for Sunday's game to be aware of the issues. An estimated 5,000 Three Lions supporters are expected to join them for the match, which kicks off at 6pm local time (1am Monday UK time). England will fly in two days before the match. Mexico fans previously kept opponents Ecuador awake by letting off fireworks outside their hotel.
Gary and Jo are attending every England game and have tickets for the final if England reach the match in New York on July 19.
