Mexico City considers limiting street drinking after massive World Cup party

Mexico City's government has announced it is considering measures to limit the sale of alcohol in public spaces after more than 700,000 people gathered downtown to celebrate Mexico's football team advancing to the knockout stage of the World Cup. Mexico's victory against South Korea sparked massive street celebrations, with fans dressed in green El Tri jerseys or colorful Lucha Libre masks dancing in the rain, waving flags, singing anthems, and blowing vuvuzelas.

The next morning, Reforma Avenue, one of the city's main arteries, was littered with rubbish, and many of its yellow cempasuchil flowers had been trampled. Authorities collected some 40 tonnes of waste around the historic center.

Mexico City's government secretary Cesar Craviotto told a news conference on Friday that part of the government's duty of care during the massive football event is prevention, which includes controlling illegal sales of alcohol on the streets. Craviotto said the government would ask restaurants and bars in the area to prevent customers from taking alcoholic drinks off premises, and convenience stores nearby could be asked to stop selling alcohol in the hours before a big game.

The government said it plans to set up seven more large screens around the center in addition to the current 12 to help disperse crowds, and deploy more personnel to limit beer sales by street vendors. "We will keep insisting that fans have fun but without excessive alcohol consumption," Craviotto said.

In Boston, another World Cup host city, Scottish fans, known as the "Tartan Army," drank such vast quantities of beer after Scotland's team beat Haiti 1-0 at the city stadium that several bars reported running dry.

Mexico is set to face the Czech Republic in the group stage on Wednesday.