Why Have Three Ecuadorean Players Been Gunned Down in September?

The murders of Jonathan González, Wil Maicol Valencia Vernaza and Leandro Yépez are further evidence to how organised crime is zeroing on the profits to be made from football.

On the night of September 19, 2025, Jonathan González was unwinding at a friend’s house in the Ecuadorean coastal city of Esmeraldas. He had played a match for his club, Club 22 de Julio, just days earlier and was preparing for another that coming weekend.

Around 9 p.m., two men arrived on a motorcycle, barged into the gathering, and opened fire with 9mm pistols at González and those around him. González was hit in the head and upper body and killed at once. He was 31 years old. Another man was gravely wounded and died en route to the hospital.