Unfortunately for Colombia, the winners, football was overshadowed by a brawl in the stands.

“Our entire family was hit by an avalanche; this is a catastrophe. We had to defend the people we cared about.

Defender Jose Maria Gimenez made these appeals after the game after seeing La Celeste’s relatives, Uruguay players, Colombia supporters, and organisers fight in the bleachers for over ten minutes.

Everything descended into mayhem shortly after Colombia defeated Uruguay 1-0 in the Copa America semifinals held in Miami. A brawl broke out between players and spectators in the stands, including Darwin Nunez, Ronald Araujo, and other players.

Video replays showed that punches were thrown, objects were tossed and people were struck. It was a dangerous and unsettling scene. And one that marred what has been a damn good game.

Colombia showed an incredible amount of heart while down a man, outlasting Uruguay to earn that 1-0 win that sent them to the Copa America final. But what happened post-match certainly dampened what happened during the game.

Valverde’s wife and children run out of crowd

Nunez, Araujo and a several other players could face ramifications, especially after a brawl that seemed to snowball. A video showed Núñez hitting a fan in Colombia team colors, and according to the Associated Press, it took more than 10 minutes for police to restore order. The public address announcer asked for fans to leave the stadium, but several supporters remained.

About 100 Uruguayan fans and members of the federation staff remained on the field more than 20 minutes after the game, while Colombia fans made their way out to celebrate.

Eventually, the focus will return to soccer, and the upcoming clash between Colombia and Argentina with a trophy on the line. Maybe that match will be good enough to establish itself as the defining moment of this tournament, but perhaps not. That unfortunately will probably be Wednesday night’s melee.

It wasn’t supposed to be that way, and it didn’t have to be. It was a sad night after what had been generally entertaining Copa America.