There is probably no tougher team to play for than Indios, the Mexican club based in Juarez, center of the drug war that had more than 2,500 murders last year.
Indios is last in thestandings and certain to be relegated. To make matters worse, players are being extorted. “My players — I’m not going to say any names — but some have been extorted. Their familiesaren’t in Juarez,” Indios president Francisco Ibarra said. “Our third-choice goalkeeper was here one day and gone the next because he receiveddeath threats, and bad people were demanding money from him.”
Sergio Belmonte, a spokesman for Ciudad Juarez city hall, said soccer playerswere logical targets for the violence that afflicts the border city. “We don’t doubt this has happened because it’s a problem that affects every sector,” Belmonte said.“There’s certainly a state of insecurity that they can’t escape, being public figures.”