Mexican Soccer Star Slammed After Son’s Narco-Themed Birthday Party

A Mexican soccer star faces possible sanctions after photographs of his son’s birthday party led to outrage. In the images, children are shown holding toy weapons and wearing hats referencing the Sinaloa Cartel.

The controversy began over the weekend when photographs from a birthday party hosted by Julio Cesar “Cata” Dominguez went viral.  Dominguez is a player with the Cruz Azul professional soccer team.

The photographs showed children wearing baseball caps with the letters JGL and Chapiza. The letters JGL are typically associated with Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman Loera, the jailed leader of the Sinaloa Cartel. Chapiza is used by the sons of El Chapo and their henchmen to identify their organization. It has become a brand of sorts complete with merchandise.

Numerosos futbolistas viven en una burbuja, por ignorantes y/o inconscientes. ¿Cómo haces una fiesta con esa temática? ¿Cómo se te ocurre involucrar a tu equipo profesional, y luego publicarlo en redes? Pésimo el Cata Domínguez. pic.twitter.com/6ezOCOgOQb

— Javier Alarcón (@Javier_Alarcon_) January 8, 2023

The photographs sparked outrage in Mexico since the party took place days after the Sinaloa Cartel spread terror throughout the city of Culiacan in response to a military operation where authorities captured Ovidio “El Raton” Guzman Lopez, one of the sons of El Chapo. Gunmen from La Chapiza clashed with military forces, set blockades, torched property, and even shot at commercial airliners. Mexico’s government confirmed that 29 individuals died that day.

Soon after the photographs hit broad circulation, Mexico’s Soccer League and Cruz Azul issued a joint statement condemning the incident.

Mensaje a la opinión pública:
#LigaMX y @CruzAzul pic.twitter.com/KQKZETeCNy

— Liga BBVA MX (@LigaBBVAMX) January 10, 2023

This week, Dominguez claimed the theme of the party was supposed to be in reference to a video game and apologized for any misunderstandings.

Mensaje de Julio César Domínguez a la opinión pública: pic.twitter.com/USjYXyg6Nt

— CRUZ AZUL (@CruzAzul) January 10, 2023

Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook. He can be contacted at Iortiz@breitbart.com. 

Brandon Darby is the managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at bdarby@breitbart.com.