Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo — The World Cup was experienced with great intensity in this multicultural city, home to people of many nationalities, Mayor Estefania Mercado Asencio said Monday, noting that the sporting event ended with no major incidents.
Asked about the five people arrested Sunday after Argentina’s loss in the World Cup final, Mercado said such reactions are part of that intensity and that it is not the first time a sporting event has caused people to get overly excited. Despite the arrests, order was maintained and there were no major incidents, she added.
“This is a multicultural city, with people of many nationalities who choose to live in Playa del Carmen,” Mercado said.
The mayor noted that in terms of tourism trends, the World Cup led many visitors to stay in the main cities. Now that it is over, she expects more tourists than anticipated, taking advantage of the summer holidays. In preparation, the city has installed new lifeguard stations to bolster beach safety, where incidents have already occurred, she explained.
“What comes next is recovering in terms of the holidays; the sargassum is decreasing,” Mercado said.
Regarding President Claudia Sheinbaum’s visit, which was interrupted over the weekend, Mercado said Sheinbaum is fully aware of the problems affecting Playa del Carmen, including the service provided by the Federal Electricity Commission (CFE), which has been insufficient. This will be addressed through a major investment by the state-owned company, as well as a private energy generation project.
“A large investment is coming; we expect the CFE to make the announcement with the company, which will bring more capacity, so we no longer have these blackouts,” Mercado said.
The mayor, the governor, and the CFE are aware of this investment, which could materialize this year. Regarding sargassum, the president was scheduled to announce several concrete actions to combat it. Although that was postponed due to her sudden trip to the United States, the strategy remains firm.
“What was going to be presented on Sunday are very concrete actions,” Mercado said. “I already had previous meetings. The president sent an advance team from the Navy; they already shared with us the requirements for the investment, which is very large, authorized by the president. In due time, what it is, how it is, and when work begins will be announced.”
