Copa Libertadores final suspended indefinitely in wake of fan violence
CONMEBOL once again postponed the second leg of the ill-fated Copa Libertadores final between Boca Juniors and River Plate, citing unfair conditions in the aftermath of an attack that sent two Boca midfielders to hospital.
The decision comes an hour after Boca Juniors released a statement urging CONMEBOL to suspend the match.
A new date will be decided Tuesday during a meeting between executives, according to CONMEBOL.
The highly anticipated match - which was supposed to kick off Saturday at 3 p.m. ET - was pushed to Sunday after River Plate fans pelted Boca's bus with debris.
Boca also formally requested sanctions against River.
River fans were already queuing to enter El Monumental for the rescheduled 3 p.m. ET kick-off when the announcement was made.
Boca had appealed for the game to be played "on equal terms" after reaching a "gentleman's agreement" with River president Rodolfo D'Onofrio on Saturday to postpone it by 24 hours.
However, in Sunday's statement, Boca said the team remains in no condition to play.
The club asked CONMEBOL to enforce Article 18 of their rules and regulations, which, according to freelance journalist Sam Kelly, involves anything from "a slap on the wrist" to a walkover.
It's the same provision River invoked when Boca supporters pepper-sprayed players at half-time of a Copa Libertadores match in 2015. Boca were subsequently kicked out of the competition and fined $200,000 as punishment.
The second leg of the 2018 final - dubbed by the South American press as the "final to end all finals" - was initially delayed and then postponed entirely because of the attack. Boca midfielders Pablo Perez and Gonzalo Lamarda were sent to hospital with cuts to the face and both were pictured with eyepatches.
"I'm feeling hurt," Perez said, "because this was supposed to be a party and it looked more like a war zone."
Boca star Carlos Tevez, along with teammate Fernando Gago, told reporters they had suffered from tear gas during the ordeal.
"There were two Boca players in the hospital, another one vomiting, I was vomiting too, everyone sneezing," Tevez said. "What else does River need to do so they give them the cup? Why, seriously, why are they not getting it at once?"