Football Shapes Culture and Media Across Latin America
Football is portrayed as a powerful social force that inspires individual well‑being, community identity and cultural expression throughout the region.
In Colombia, journalist Felipe Valderrama uses archival research to reconstruct forgotten moments of Colombian football history, a project funded by the Fondo Único de TIC.
Peruvian fans now follow the sport primarily on mobile devices: 58.4 % of households have internet, 95.1 % own a cellphone, and average mobile data use rose to 19.24 GB per user in 2024, a 239 % increase since 2019. Since 2023, 1190 Sports has managed Liga 1 broadcast rights, leading to fragmented, clip‑driven consumption.
In Mexico, writer Juan Villoro highlights football’s role in collective memory during the 2026 World Cup, noting that Mexico will host 13 of the 104 matches and that the sport intertwines with literature, politics and everyday life. A related Mexican column reflects on football as a social representation, citing Octavio Paz and recalling the 2022 Querétaro tragedy.
Chile’s Betsson Score App aggregates news, results and statistics for local fans, while former lawyer Alejandro Lorca describes his journey to become a prominent TNT Sports commentator, emphasizing his passion for Universidad de Chile.