On This Date in Sports July 2, 1994: Murdered for Losing
In collaboration with the Sportsecyclopedia.com
A World Cup loss for Colombia turns tragic as Andres Escobar is murdered, ten days after his own goal was the difference in a 2-1 loss to the United States at the World Cup. The loss led to Colombia finishing last in pool play as they failed to reach the knockout stage. At the time it was the first win by Team USA in 44 years at the World Cup.
The 1994 World Cup was a chance to grow soccer in America. It helped lead to the creation of Major League Soccer in 1996 and showed that the sports were finally taking a foothold after many failed attempts to sell the game. Team USA who ended a four-decade drought in 1990, took another step forward by winning its first World Cup match since 1950. In that game played on June 22nd at the Rose Bowl, the United States beat Colombia 2-1 due to an own goal by Andres Escobar. Team USA would go 1-1-1 in group play and advanced to the knockout stage, where they lost to eventual champion Brazil 1-0.
For Colombia, Soccer is life. Losing to the Americans was a painful unacceptable loss for many in the country. Andres Escobar the man who was seen at fault for the loss was viewed with scorn by many in the South American Nation. After going out with friends after returning home, Escobar was shot multiple times in a parking lot as two men pulled out a gun and yelled goal for every shot fired. Escobar was pronounced dead a short time later at the hospital.
The shooting of Andres Escobar left the nation of Colombia in shock, as 120,000 fans attended his funeral. Humberto Castro Munoz who worked as a bodyguard for the drug cartels was arrested and later confessed to the murder of Escobar. Initially sentenced to 43 years in prison, he would serve just 11 years. It is widely believed that the murder came on the orders of Gallion Brothers who were running the Medellin Cartel.
The shooting tarnished the image of the Colombia National Team. Over the next two decades, it took time to rebuild the soccer program, as they missed three consecutive World Cups. In 2018 they appeared to be back on track making it to the quarterfinals in Russia.