Argentina Forced to Relocate Chicago Friendly as Protests and Poor Ticket Sales Spark Venue Crisis
The friendly match between Argentina and Puerto Rico has been officially moved and rescheduled to October 14 at Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, after initially being planned for Chicago one day prior.
A representative from the Argentine Football Association (AFA), who requested anonymity, indicated that the decision to move away from Soldier Field, the home venue of the NFL's Chicago Bears, was influenced by the current immigration enforcement activities in the city, as reported by the Associated Press on Wednesday.
Chicago Park District representative Luca Serra subsequently told the AP: "The event organizer decided this morning based on disappointing ticket sales."
Argentina officially announced the new date and venue on Friday. The match is scheduled to begin at 9 p.m. ET.
Argentina faced Venezuela at Hard Rock Stadium on Friday evening, securing a 1-0 victory through Giovani Lo Celso's strike, and had planned to travel afterward for their encounter with Puerto Rico at Soldier Field. Before the Venezuela match began, Argentina's squad announced that Lionel Messi would not be available for selection—his availability for the Puerto Rico fixture remains uncertain.
Chase Stadium is scheduled to host the MLS match between Inter Miami and Atlanta United on Saturday evening, just over 72 hours before Argentina takes on Puerto Rico.
Argentina Venue Change Comes After Trump's World Cup Relocation Comments
In Chicago and other cities led by Democratic administrations, U.S. President Donald Trump has activated the national guard to support immigration enforcement operations.
Trump recently commented on Chicago's situation and the potential for relocating 2026 FIFA World Cup matches, which will be jointly hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico, even though no games are currently scheduled for the city.
"They're controlled by extreme left radicals and they're incompetent," Trump stated to a journalist. "As you're aware, we're entering Memphis, and we're targeting some additional cities, and very shortly we'll enter Chicago. It will be secure for the World Cup.
"If I determine it's unsafe, we'll relocate it to another city. Definitely... It's genuinely a reasonable question. If I believe it's not secure, we're going to transfer it from that location."
FIFA vice president Victor Montagliani dismissed any discussion of relocating matches, emphasizing that FIFA holds exclusive authority to make such decisions.
The 2026 World Cup is scheduled from June 11 to July 19, with Argentina aiming to retain the title they captured in Qatar in 2022.