Falcao blasts Colombian football: “No more laziness and mediocrity” | OneFootball

Colombia’s elimination from the 2026 World Cup, in the round of 16 against Switzerland after a penalty shootout, led Radamel Falcao to launch strong criticism at the organization of football in his country.

A historic figure in Colombian football, the former FC Porto striker, who won a UEFA Europa League between 2009 and 2011, was covering the tournament for ESPN and, although he regretted the outcome, focused above all on the structural problems that, in his view, continue to hold Colombian football back.

At 40, Falcao was direct in identifying the lack of domestic competitiveness as the main obstacle. «It’s a disgrace that our football doesn’t have a third division, that it lacks competitiveness and encourages mediocrity and laziness,» he said, pointing the finger at a system based on just two tiers.

In the player’s view, that situation ends up fueling stagnation. «There are teams that don’t invest because they know they won’t go down, that have first-division budgets and pay players next to nothing. This only creates mediocrity in the institution and in the footballers themselves, who know that nothing happens if they finish last,» he added.

Falcao also called for deep changes in youth development. «Our training system has to improve, as do the emphasis, care, attention, tools and infrastructure that should be given to our young players,» he said, stressing that the country continues to lose talent far too early. «Perhaps we are the only ones in the world without a third or fourth division, and we lose players at 20 because they have nowhere to play.»

Regarding the elimination of the national team coached by Néstor Lorenzo, he regretted the missed chances and the outcome on penalties, something he sees as recurring over time. «It’s a shame because of the chances we had; we didn’t know how to make the most of them. It was from 12 yards, as so many other times, that our football had its wings clipped. It’s something we definitely have to work on in our clubs and in the national team,» he said.

Despite the criticism, the striker acknowledged the work of the federation, which created training centers in Bogotá and Barranquilla, but stressed that the priority must be structural reforms. «Our football deserves more,» he concluded.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.