Colombia “spied” ahead of their World Cup qualifier against Bolivia, says head coach Nestor Lorenzo

Colombia head coach Nestor Lorenzo claims his team was “spied on” ahead of their 2026 World Cup qualifier against Bolivia on Thursday.

Lorenzo said Wednesday before the game in El Alto, Bolivia, that the Colombian soccer federation would file an official complaint after an unknown person was photographed watching his team's training session.

“It’s unfortunate to be spied on,” Lorenzo said. “I don’t know where it came from or who it was, but we have pictures and will lodge a complaint.

“Of course you want to train with the discretion and privacy you deserve. What happened violated the group's privacy. But we’ll have the person photographed and see what happens in the next few hours.”

In July, the Canadian women's team at the Paris Olympics was deducted six points because drones were used to spy on their opponents. FIFA later ordered Canada Soccer to pay a fine of $313,000 (£240,000).

On Monday, Bolivia coach Oscar Villegas told the Bolivian TV show Fútbol Mania that he hoped his team would be the first team to beat Colombia in the current World Cup qualifiers.

He then claimed that members of the Bolivian press had inadvertently helped Colombia prepare for the match. “It would be nice to have the information that Colombia has about Bolivia,” Villegas said.

“Reporters know how (Bolivia) trained, who substituted for whom, everything that happened during the training session, which was obviously closed to the public. We would like information about what Colombia will do, but we have something probable. We’ll see that in the next few days.”

The athlete has asked the Bolivian Football Association for a response to Lorenzo's comments.

According to reports from Bolivia, tickets for tomorrow's qualifier sold out within hours. Bolivia is aiming for its third consecutive World Cup qualifying win and is currently in eighth place, tied on points (9) with Paraguay in seventh. Six teams automatically qualify for CONMEBOL.

The seventh-placed team participates in a six-team intercontinental play-off tournament, in which two teams earn the right to participate in the World Cup.

(Martín Fonseca/Eurasia Sport Images/Getty Images)