Name: Mexico City’s World Cup stadium water divide
Uploaded: 2025-12-05T21:51:41.774Z
Duration: 5 min 8 s
Description: Mexico City’s legendary Azteca Stadium has its own well, but the people living around it can go days without water. For The National, CBC’s Jorge Barrera talks to people in Santa Úrsula Coapa who fear the 2026 World Cup will put even more pressure on water supplies.

Mexico City’s legendary Azteca Stadium has its own well, but the people living around it can go days without water. For The National, CBC’s Jorge Barrera talks to people in Santa Úrsula Coapa who fear the 2026 World Cup will put even more pressure on water supplies.

Santa Úrsula Coapa

Residents of the Santa Ursula Coapa community, located near Mexico City's Azteca Stadium, are experiencing persistent water shortages, while the stadium and its owners have consistent access to water from a private well. The well, drilled by a Televisa Group spinoff with government approval, has become a focal point of community protests and demands for equitable water distribution as the stadium prepares to host the opening of the 2026 World Cup.

Community leaders and activists have engaged with city officials and staged demonstrations, arguing that water should be prioritized for local residents rather than corporate interests. City authorities have stated that the well's concession is now under municipal control and that its water has been donated to the city's supply since 2023, but skepticism remains among residents, especially as the global sporting event approaches.

Mexico City’s World Cup stadium water divide

Here at Azteca, it is a sea of silver confetti. It is not snow. It is not snowing in Mexico. Mexico City's legendary Azteca Stadium. It is Diego Maradona. Two World Cup finals, 1986. Brazil was victorious again. And 70 immortalized on this pitch. It was a fitting end to Pele's World Cup career. And World Cup 2026, held in Canada, the U.S. and Mexico, is set to open here. We've had two World Cups and the people have not benefited, says Ruben Ramirez, who leads the indigenous community of Santa Ursula Coapa. The stadium was built on their land and they still live next door. Now the community is starting to protest with graffiti and murals. And there's talk of ramping up actions leading to the World Cup's return on June 11th. The source of the conflict now is over water, he says. Water controlled by the stadium's owner. Water that this community needs. María Estela Alejandro says she had no water yesterday and is only now able to wash the dishes. When there's water, this is the maximum water pressure, she says. Alejandro lives a couple blocks from Azteca Stadium, along an alleyway with 50 other families. They often go days without water. But she says the owners of the stadium, which will be called Mexico City Stadium during the World Cup, have their own well and they never run out. I think it's ridiculous that a company owns a well, she says. Water is for the people, she says. The Mexican government gave Televisa Group, one of Mexico's biggest media corporations, the right to drill this well six years ago across from the stadium, which is owned by one of Televisa's spinoff companies. And Televisa also owns broadcast rights for World Cup games. We are next to the Azteca Stadium and behind this wall is the well. Natalia Lara is an activist who's been fighting for community water rights for years. She says the government needs to take the well back and use it to supply the community. We don't have water and Televisa always has water for the grass and we don't have water for washing, for do the laundry or for maybe for cooking. But Televisa always has water. Lara's father, Adolfo Lara, explains a map of the area. We are right here, he says. The red squares show places with water shortages. The red dot here is Televisa's well. Lara says this well was meant to feed a planned massive World Cup-related hotel complex project, now on pause, that would have put massive pressure on water supplies and threatened the survival of the community. Lara says there are fears the project will start up again with revenues from the World Cup. The community has been meeting with Mexico City officials for months to have their water needs met. Why does the community not have water, says Ramirez during a recent meeting captured by cell phone video provided to CBC News. City officials responded saying they're building a rainwater-fed garden by the stadium. We got more results protesting on the street. Here they just spin us around and around, says Ramirez. The issue has reached the dust of the country's top elected officials. During a recent morning presidential press conference, Mexico City's mayor, Clara Brugada, says The concession for the quote stadium's well was now in the city's hands. Grupo Ollamani, which owns the stadium, told CBC News the well water here has been donated to the city's water supply since 2023 and the company holds the rights until 2027. But they have no plans to restart the hotel complex project. Ramirez says he doesn't trust words meant to calm things before the World Cup. How is it possible to sit next to a monster that makes billions of dollars in profits and the people have nothing, he says. As for launching protests to disrupt the World Cup here, he says that's for the people to decide.

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