Mexican football supporters carried out a noisy overnight demonstration outside the Ecuador national team’s hotel in an apparent attempt to disrupt their rest ahead of Tuesday’s World Cup round of 32 encounter. Beginning at midnight and continuing into the early morning hours, dozens of fans assembled outside the Westin Hotel in Santa Fe, an affluent neighbourhood on the outskirts of Mexico City, using loudspeakers, horns, and motorcycles to prevent the visiting players from sleeping.

This practice, known locally as a “team hotel serenade,” is a long-standing but divisive custom in Latin American football. What once began as an impassioned show of support for home sides has increasingly turned into a psychological ploy aimed at unsettling visiting teams by depriving them of proper rest before a crucial match.

In response to the disturbance, the Ecuadorian Football Federation (FEF) announced on Tuesday that it had filed an official complaint with the World Cup organisers. “Such behaviour is entirely contrary to the spirit of fair play, equality, and togetherness that a World Cup should uphold,” the FEF said in a statement. “The FEF respectfully urges the relevant authorities to take note of these incidents and implement the necessary measures to protect the safety of our players, coaching staff, and supporters.”

The late-night commotion, reportedly coordinated through social media platforms, added further difficulty to what was already a challenging arrival for Ecuador. The incident capped a demanding logistical plan for the South American side, which had purposely scheduled a late Monday arrival to reduce the effects of Mexico City’s high altitude of 2,200 metres (7,300 feet).

According to sports science experts, teams competing at altitude are generally advised either to acclimatise for at least two weeks or to adopt a “fly-in, fly-out” strategy, arriving as close to the match as possible to avoid the short-term impact of thinner air. This latter approach is commonly used by major American sports leagues when playing fixtures in Mexico City.

However, Ecuador’s own travel from Columbus, Ohio, was beset by setbacks. Head coach Sebastián Beccacece revealed that their flight was delayed by more than three hours, though he did not clarify if the two-hour time difference between the two cities was taken into account. “The flight delay, followed by the transfer to the hotel, made it a nine-hour journey – three hours longer than scheduled,” Beccacece explained. “But the team is in good spirits and motivated, facing an opponent that performed strongly in the group stage.”

Making matters worse, the Ecuadorian squad landed at Felipe Ángeles International Airport, located roughly 65 kilometres (41 miles) from their accommodation. They then had to endure Mexico City’s notoriously dense traffic, further slowed by heavy rain on Monday night, to reach their hotel in Santa Fe.