The Mexican Women’s League (Liga MX Femenil) is under fire for the emergency response to the injury of Nayeli Rangel, one of the key Tigres Femenil players. Rangel was injured on Sunday (March 31) during a game against Puebla at Estadio Cuauhtémoc.
The incident occurred during the 49th minute of the game, with her team up 3-0. Rangel and Dulce Martínez jumped for the ball, with their heads colliding. Both players fell to the floor, and though Martínez was able to get up and continue the game, Rangel wasn’t. It took almost eight minutes for the player to be taken off the pitch, and at one point, her teammates were seen carrying the gurneys onto the field themselves.
It’s the kind of spectacle that would be unthinkable at a men’s game.
The league later released a statement that said, “All matches in our professional leagues have the necessary personnel and equipment to care for the players. The entry of the Tigres players onto the field in the face of what happened to their teammate in the match against Puebla was an act of support and solidarity that is recognized and added to the work of the medical team that was already in charge.” The statement was accompanied by a video with a counter and a sped-up look at what happened during the time Rangel was injured and the emergency services were providing assistance.
Nonetheless, fans were not buying the story, with comments ranging from “It’s hard to believe that in such a delicate situation there is not a cart to give immediate attention to a player.”
And other comments saying, “In an ideal world, the League would say something like: “What happened in Puebla vs Tigres, with Nayeli Rangel’s injury, leaves us with a lesson that there is still much to do in terms of improving care protocols and the tools that each club must provide.”
Nayeli Rangel suffered an orbital malar fracture and had to undergo surgery. The player confirmed on Instagram stories the surgery had gone well.