At least one person was killed and 47 others sustained injuries on Friday night following an unspecified “incident” at Alejandro Villanueva Stadium in Peru’s capital, Lima, during a rally ahead of a major football derby, according to the health ministry.
“There has been an unfortunate incident at the stadium in which 47 people have been injured…and sadly there is one fatality,” Health Minister Juan Carlos Velasco told media, without providing details on the cause.
Early reports suggested that part of a stadium wall had collapsed. However, Alianza Lima football club later clarified in a post on X that the incident was not linked to “the fall of walls or structural failures of the sports complex.”
Velasco added that 39 of the injured were transported to hospitals across the Lima region, including three individuals listed in critical condition.
Fire Chief Marcos Pajuelo told reporters that “the structure of the southern stands appeared to be in good condition.
There are no collapsed walls or sections fallen into the pit.”
Despite the incident, the Peruvian football league announced that the match between Alianza Lima and Club Universitario de Deportes is expected to go ahead as scheduled on Saturday night.
