As Guadalajara gears up to host four matches in the 2026 FIFA World Cup, the city is racing against the clock to revamp its infrastructure. Roads are torn up, construction sites dominate the streets, and laborers work relentlessly to ensure the city dazzles visiting fans. On the surface, it’s a story of progress and preparation. But beneath the fanfare lies a far grimmer reality—a city grappling with the staggering number of its disappeared.
Jalisco, the western state of which Guadalajara is the capital, has the highest number of disappeared individuals in Mexico. Official figures estimate around 16,000 disappearances in Jalisco alone, contributing to more than 130,000 nationwide. Yet these numbers likely understate the true scale, as families often refrain from reporting missing loved ones due to fear of retaliation.
The World Cup has intensified efforts by local authorities to “sanitize” the city’s image. In recent months, officials have threatened to remove portraits and signs at Guadalajara’s central “roundabout of the disappeared,” effectively erasing the visibility of the missing once more. This roundabout, adorned with hundreds of photos of the disappeared, tells the stories of lives cut short and families left in anguish. Among them are 32-year-old Elda Adriana Valdez Montoya, missing since 2020; 19-year-old Jordy Alejandro Cardenas Flores, allegedly taken by state prosecutors in 2022; and 16-year-old Cristofer Aaron Leobardo Ramirez Camarena, missing since April 2024.
While organized crime, particularly the notorious Jalisco New Generation Cartel, often takes the blame for these disappearances, the government is not innocent. Complicity, negligence, and systemic impunity have allowed such crimes to persist unchecked. The majority of these disappearances followed Mexico’s “war on drugs” launched in 2006, a campaign that not only failed to curb narcotics but also contributed to over 460,000 homicides across the country, backed in part by U.S. involvement.
For activists and relatives of the disappeared, the World Cup preparations feel like a cruel distraction. Maribel Cedeno, whose brother Jose Gil Cedeno Rosales vanished in 2021, highlights the ongoing neglect: “Absolutely nothing has changed,” she says, criticizing promises made by President Claudia Sheinbaum that have yet to materialize into action or protection for families of the missing. “But where is our security? Where is the security for our family members, or for those of us whose lives are at risk because we are searching for the missing?”
The stakes became even clearer in March when Cedeno and the Guerreros Buscadores de Jalisco discovered a clandestine crematorium outside Teuchitlan, reportedly used by the Jalisco New Generation Cartel for recruitment, training, and mass executions. Shockingly, authorities had previously seized the ranch but missed the human remains scattered across the site. Attempts to visit the location revealed the haunting presence of armed patrols, underscoring the perilous reality for those seeking answers.
Everywhere in Guadalajara, stories like these persist, hidden behind the façade of gleaming stadiums and renovated streets. While millions of dollars flow into World Cup preparations, ordinary Mexicans—those most affected by disappearances—see little benefit, only frustration and continued grief. The contrast between the celebration of football and the stark human suffering of Jalisco is both jarring and poignant.
Mexico may be trying to bury the reality of its vanished citizens in time for the World Cup, but the truth refuses to stay hidden. The disappeared, their families, and the relentless searchers fighting for justice remain as present as ever, ensuring that no amount of infrastructure or spectacle can fully erase the city’s darker chapters. The World Cup may score goals on the field, but in Guadalajara, the fight for human dignity and remembrance continues—one family, one poster, and one relentless search at a time.