All celebration, no trepidation for fans at Mexico friendly match in Oakland

OAKLAND On Facebook and in group chats with fellow Mexican-American immigrants Luis Ortega saw rumors and messages urging to exercise caution He ignored them Clearly so did thousands of other festive soccer fans dressed in a sea of red green and white who partied well into the night inside and out of the Oakland Coliseum Amid a federal immigration crackdown the Mexican national gang s tour stop in Oakland on Saturday that ended in a - draw against Japan drew specific concern that such a concentrated gathering could become a target for Immigration and Customs Enforcement ICE It s not gonna happen here Ortega disclosed confidently amid tailgaters before the match He was right There was little trepidation among the broadcasted crowd of a sellout but lots of celebration And even more tequila For supporters of El Tri the group s first visit to Oakland since offered them potentially their only chance to see their squad leading up to next year s World Cup While the tournament will come to Santa Clara those matches are unlikely to feature the Mexicans who will either play in Estadio Azteca or Los Angeles SoFi Stadium if they emerge from the first stage in the top two in Group A as expected The friendly against Japan the first association to qualify served as a warmup for Mexico riding the momentum of first-place finishes in the Gold Cup and Nations League The Japanese ranked th in the world provided a high-level opponent and a test for Javier Aguirre s th-ranked squad which made a surprising exit in the group stage from the tournament Soccer fans walk past a vendor in the parking lot before a friendly soccer match between Mexico and Japan at the Oakland Coliseum in Oakland Calif on Saturday Sept Jose Carlos Fajardo Bay Area News Group Eddie Aguayo from San Leandro joked that the organization was on probation for him But that didn t stop him from rounding up a group of or friends from their hometown in Jalisco Mexico No matter where El Tri plays in he announced I ve gotta go It s the year he is set to retire as a construction worker and he offered a two-word answer when requested about President Donald Trump s embrace of the tournament which is being hosted by the U S Canada and Mexico Trump released last month that the draw for the tournament will take place at the Kennedy Center in Washington D C on Dec Expletive Trump Aguayo mentioned We re building America It s sad I ve got friends family who don t have papers But they pay taxes If they pay taxes they should give them a chance When it came to the threat of ICE the location of this friendly in the Bay Area represented somewhat of a haven in comparison to Los Angeles where there have been widespread immigration raids since Trump took office One vendor named Maria who urged only to be identified by her first name hoped to make hawking all sorts of apparel in Mexican colors Hundreds of others had everything from tacos micheladas and fresh fruit for sale to the trendy Labubu dolls She made the drive from Los Angeles and noted she felt safer doing business in the Coliseum parking lot than outside El Traffico the rivalry match between LAFC and the Los Angeles Galaxy one locale she s been operating at for the past five years Mayor Barbara Lee reassured fans a day before the match We do not cooperate with ICE she mentioned We have our challenges yes but we have such opportunity And this is a weekend of opportunity People should be joyful not worried Even though I know that the anxiety is here At one point Aguayo interrupted the interview to take a photo with five men in red spandex suits dressed as the traditional Mexican superhero El Chapulin Waterfalls of tequila flowed from enough bottles to lose count including those in Aguayo s group Alameda County Sheriff deputies patrol the parking lot before a friendly soccer match between Mexico and Japan at the Oakland Coliseum in Oakland Calif on Saturday Sept Jose Carlos Fajardo Bay Area News Group It was almost easy to forget there was another squad whose supporters are also well-represented among the Bay Area s demographics Not for Aguayo though Every Japan fan dressed in a blue jersey who passed by their tent got a flow of silver agave liquor poured into their mouths Inside Japanese supporters were outnumbered about to I think it s wonderful to see our Mexican fellow citizens show up in big droves to assistance their crew revealed Kentaro Matsuura who was born in Okayama Japan and now lives in Burlingame Wearing a national squad jersey he purchased in Matsuura brought with him his wife and their three kids aged and who weren t yet born the last time he got to see his company in person It s pretty special he mentioned It s like a once-in-a-decade type of thing Ortega who has lived in the shadows of the Coliseum since moving from Nayarit Mexico in reported Oakland needed more days like these after the departures of three pro sports teams Soccer fans walk past vendor tents in the parking lot before a friendly soccer match between Mexico and Japan at the Oakland Coliseum in Oakland Calif on Saturday Sept Jose Carlos Fajardo Bay Area News Group Related Articles Bay FC drops fourth straight championship with loss to NWSL-leading Kansas City Current Oakland Roots played instrumental role in drawing Mexico-Japan friendly to Coliseum Germany stunned by Slovakia in historic World Cup qualifying loss Spain and Belgium win Landon Donovan tops San Jose Sports Hall of Fame s class World Cup tickets initially to cost - but could fluctuate with dynamic pricing We used to have these kinds of events before when we had the Warriors the A s the Raiders he declared Oakland hey we ve gotta unite The communities have to unite in Oakland Aguirre the Mexican head coach summed up the experience in one word Fantastico I would have liked to give the fans a win he commented But the area has been great the training facilities in Alameda the hotel in downtown Oakland it all was terrific That declared coming back to California next year hasn t crossed his mind I don t want to think about it he grinned Mexico Mexico Mexico's Jorge S nchez battles Japan's Kauro Mitoma for the ball during the first half of a friendly soccer match at the Oakland Coliseum in Oakland Calif on Saturday Sept Jose Carlos Fajardo Bay Area News Group Mexico fans cheer for their squad during the second half of a friendly soccer match at the Oakland Coliseum in Oakland Calif on Saturday Sept Mexico and Japan ended the meeting with a - tie Jose Carlos Fajardo Bay Area News Group A vendor sells merchandise in the parking lot before a friendly soccer match between Mexico and Japan at the Oakland Coliseum in Oakland Calif on Saturday Sept Jose Carlos Fajardo Bay Area News Group