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On the road to the 2018 FIFA World Cup, the qualifiers in the various FIFA confederations will continue from August 28th to September 5th. Among these matches, there will be games that generate high expectations due to their importance in the path to qualifying for the major international tournament or because they involve two potential football powerhouses.

However, in the South American Football Confederation (Conmebol), there will be a match that attracts attention not only for its football aspect, but for the social and political tensions that exist between both countries: Venezuela vs. Colombia.

On Thursday, August 31st, the Vinotinto team will host the coffee growers' squad at Pueblo Nuevo stadium, located in the province of Táchira. This match corresponds to matchday 15 of the South American qualifiers. This location is on the border of both nations, and conflicts that have resulted in the closure of the passage between the two countries have occurred there.

The disagreements in Táchira began in 2015 when there was a confrontation between Venezuelan military personnel and smugglers, resulting in three injured soldiers and one civilian. In response, the Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro carried out a process of deporting Colombians and militarizing and closing the borders, claiming that the economic crisis and insecurity in the town were caused by the influx of Colombian paramilitaries into Venezuelan territory. However, these measures were revoked a few days later.

The uncertainty at the border resurfaced last weekend when the governor of the Colombian department of La Guajira, Weildler Guerra, accused members of the Bolivarian National Guard (GNB) of invading Colombian territory. In response, the Colombian government protested against its neighboring country, asserting that the incident could have escalated into an international dispute.

Furthermore, tension exists due to the rejection of the Colombian State towards the government of Nicolás Maduro and his way of controlling the country through government impositions, censorship, and the deprivation of freedom of expression in society.

Regarding the match, Venezuelan sports authorities have announced that there will be security at the borders to ensure the safety of both Colombian footballers and their fans.