Venezuelan authorities delay the departure of Bolivia’s national football team

Bolivian coach Óscar Villegas said it was intentional to harm his squad’s preparation to face Chile

The Bolivian national football team was delayed for over 12 hours in Venezuela this weekend after a 2-0 loss to the home team in a 2026 World Cup qualifier match in Maturín. Local authorities denied the team’s charter flight permission to depart for Santa Cruz, Bolivia, forcing the team to return to their hotel.

Coach Óscar Villegas and federation officials accused Venezuela of intentional obstruction, citing a similar incident with Peru’s team, and suggested it was a tactic to hinder the squad’s preparation for the match against Chile. The Bolivian Football Federation plans to file a complaint with the South American Football Confederation (Conmebol), denouncing the “illegal retention” as a political interference in sports.

Villegas insisted his team had all the necessary documentation and permits to avoid any delays, as they feared would happen. “We already knew that. We asked the Minister of Government to dialogue with the Venezuelan government so that they would let us leave. We also spoke with the Venezuelan consul here a week ago, alerting him that this would happen,” he explained.

He recalled that a similar situation happened last March with the Peruvian delegation, which had to spend eight hours at the airport to leave Venezuela on the local flag carrier Conviasa. “We chose another one, but they see that they do not respect even another airline from abroad,” Villegas also complained. “It is not a surprise for us, but these things do not lead to anything good,” Villegas further argued.

Bolivian football officials insisted the delay cost the team a full day’s work, leaving only Sunday and Monday to practice before facing Chile on Tuesday.