Cali sets Colombian first with biometric stadium entry

Cali’s Estadio Olímpico Pascual Guerrero has claimed a first for a Colombian stadium after rolling out biometric technology for fans entering the venue.

The technology was introduced for the Categoria Primera A match between América de Cali and Deportivo Pereira on Saturday.

It has been introduced after three-year stadium bans were handed out to fans who were involved in violence during América de Cali’s match against Atlético Nacional on December 14.

The trouble led to the stadium being closed to fans for five matches. On Saturday, only the west and east stands were opened, with fans needing to have their face scanned upon entry.

The biometric technology allows authorities to easily check who is entering the stadium. The technology was delivered to the Cali police department with the help of Colombia’s National Civic Registry.

The face scan will allow the authorities to extract fans’ biographical data so they can later perform a comparison through a photographic capture. The information collected during the process will be sent to the National Civic Registry to confirm fans’ identities in real time.

It is hoped the technology will make it easier to identify fans and prevent identity theft. The technology was previously trialled at Medellín’s Estadio Atanasio Girardot, but Pascual Guerrero is aiming to be the first Colombian stadium to install it permanently.

The stadium has a capacity of 37,000 but, owing to the ongoing restrictions, the attendance for Saturday’s match was 6,302. According to city authorities, 23 people were denied access to the stadium as registration checks revealed that their ID cards were blocked.

Speaking ahead of Saturday’s game, Álvaro Pretelt, undersecretary of security in Cali, said: “The message is clear: those people who go to the stadium to cause trouble, attack others and invade the field, should know that they will not have any permission. Those who carried out all these activities in December are blocked from entering Pascual Guerrero for three years. And those who want to do so again when we reopen our stadium should know that they will also be blocked from entering for three years, which is what is allowed by law.”

Last year, Spanish construction company Urbas was awarded a contract to build a new stadium for América de Cali.

The stadium will have a capacity of 52,000 and feature a retractable roof. The stadium project will be known as ‘Arena América’ and it is hoped work will be completed by 2027, the club’s centenary year.