Reggaeton to silence the bombs, tear gas on the pitch, and you still think football is just a game?

La guerra del fútbol.

The Football War. No, it's not the name of some novel or a movie, but the actual war in 1969 between El Salvador and Honduras was triggered by none other than a football tie of the two countries in the 1970 World Cup qualifiers. This goes to show how influential football actually is in this part of the world. Influential and decisively attached to all those political, social and economic issues that disturb Latin America for decades, if not centuries.

The last night was living proof of those circumstances, with plenty of events on and around the pitch that resemble more a genuine revolution than a regular football game. It all happened in Columbia, the state in South America disturbed with massive social riots the last couple of weeks, with a government and unions incapable of reaching a mutual agreement that would put an end to dreadful protests.

And football, of course, found itself in the middle of all that chaos.

You can feel the tension in the tie Atletico Nacional vs Nacional (© Carlos Ortega - Pool/Getty Images)

Precisely Copa Libertadores - the South American Champions League - that features two Columbian clubs, Atletico Nacional and Atletico Junior, alongside the best outfits from Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, etc.

Well aware of the importance of those ties, protesters threatened to stand up against the games on Wednesday night physically. And although both fixtures somehow reached a regular end, it was anything but the pleasure for players, coaches and officials.

The famous Argentine giants River Plate were to face Atletico Junior from Barranquilla in almost war-a-like surroundings. Local police threw lots of tear gas to suppress protesters far away from the stadium. And you probably know that tear gas does not recognise who should it affect, so it reached the pitch itself. The victim was River Plate's coach and the former Argentine international Marcelo Gallardo, who was pictured crying at the bench shortly after the kick-off.

But that's just the beginning.

As per Jaime Pumarejo, the mayor of Barranquilla, Gallardo asked the home side to put on some music, precisely reggaeton, to silence the noise coming from the outside of the stadium, where protests had reached the boiling point.

Gallardo's boys struggled to accommodate those circumstances, trailing 1-0 for almost 70 minutes before Paulo Diaz scored an equaliser late in the stoppage time. One point for them is not such a terrible achievement bearing in mind what they had to put up with.

On the other end of Columbia, in Medellin, Atletico Nacional hosted Nacional from Uruguay, and it was another more-than-a-game event. Firstly, the visitors were almost hostages in their hotel; then, they were not allowed to reach the stadium minutes before the game, so that caused a brawl between the two sides.

It was quite a turmoil leading to two red cards, one for each slot, seconds after the kick-off. The footage from the pitch reveals two captains' clash in front of the referee, who put his entire integrity and authority to ensure the game is played.

Ref: "Let's put aside what happened."

Nacional captain: "We need more empathy from them... Let me speak! Why shouldn't I speak?"

Ref: "Please, please, please... Yes, but we are here for a football game."

Nacional captain: "We are all colleagues, players, football players."

The game ended in a goalless draw, which was maybe the best way to finish the entire drama. At least, on the pitch. Outside of it, nothing has changed since Columbia stays unrest and on the verge of a civil war that would, hopefully, be avoided.

Oh, and that Atletico Nacional was linked to Pablo Escobar, the world's most prominent drug lord during the '80s and the early '90s. So, you still think football is just a game?

By: BOJAN BABIĆ