River’s tough journey to reach Venezuela and debut in the Copa Libertadores

River Plate faced an unusual journey to reach Venezuela and make their Copa Libertadores debut against Deportivo Táchira on Tuesday. The odyssey began with a previous stop in Colombia and then a long bus ride to San Cristóbal.This trip had its origin in a conjunctural political context, as the Venezuelan government of Nicolás Maduro closed the airspace to Argentine-flagged companies in retaliation for an incident related to the seizure of a Boeing 747 cargo plane in Venezuelan territory in June 2022, which was then turned over to U.S. authorities. As a result of this measure, diplomatic actions were triggered by Argentina.Faced with the impossibility of flying directly to Venezuela on a charter flight, River’s team opted to travel to Cúcuta, a Colombian city near the border, where there were no problems flying with a local airline, given that, despite Javier Milei’s statements about Gustavo Petro, From Cúcuta, the team travelled by bus to San Cristóbal, in the state of Táchira, for an 11-hour journey. After sleeping in the city, the team is expected to train at a local venue the day before the game to stay active. After the match, the second leg will be equally demanding. The team will return by bus to Cúcuta and from there take a flight to Buenos Aires, where they are expected to arrive on Wednesday night. River is not the only Argentine club facing logistical challenges, as Boca will also experience an odyssey to reach their destination in Bolivia, where they will face Nacional Potosí in the Copa Sudamericana, with trips in 4×4 vans along a 150 km route.

Original source in Spanish