City Brings in Curfew Ahead of World Cup Game

A Massachusetts city home to one of the nation's largest Cape Verdean communities will impose a nighttime curfew ahead of Cape Verde's World Cup match Friday after police said recent postgame celebrations were marred by shootings, stabbings, and other violence, prompting city officials to request National Guard assistance.

• Brockton Mayor Moises Rodrigues announced what he called a "temporary safety curfew" within the Boston suburb at a news conference Wednesday, the AP reports. Cape Verde, an island nation off the west coast of Africa that qualified for the World Cup for the first time this year, is scheduled to face Argentina at 6pm Eastern on Friday in the knockout stage of the tournament.

• "The purpose of this curfew is to protect public safety, reduce criminal activity associated with post-game celebrations, and enable police, fire, and emergency personnel to effectively maintain order and respond to emergencies," Rodrigues said.
• The curfew will run from 10pm Friday until 5am Saturday in parts of Brockton, where thousands of people have gathered after Cape Verde's World Cup matches, pouring into downtown streets waving flags, dancing, and celebrating late into the night. No one will be allowed to enter establishments serving alcohol after 7pm, and last call will be at 9:30pm.
• Brockton is home to one of the nation's largest Cape Verdean communities. Nearly one in five residents is Cape Verdean, and the community is often referred to as the "11th island" of Cape Verde.

• Cape Verde has captured the attention of its diaspora during a historic World Cup run, drawing jubilant crowds in Brockton after matches. City officials have repeatedly said the overwhelming majority of those celebrations have been peaceful.
• But police say recent celebrations have also been followed by violence. At least nine people have been injured in shootings that occurred after World Cup matches or as crowds gathered downtown, according to Brockton police. Others were hurt in stabbings.
• Police Chief Brenda Perez said the department is understaffed and has relied on mutual aid from the Massachusetts State Police, the Plymouth County Sheriff's Office, and neighboring police departments during previous celebrations. She said more than 200 officers were deployed during recent World Cup gatherings but declined to discuss operational plans for Friday.
• Cape Verde, in the World Cup for the first time, have beaten the odds to reach the knockout stage with results including an astonishing shutout of Spain, but few are expecting a win against 2022 champions Argentina. The BBC says the game "could be the biggest mismatch the World Cup has ever seen."