Thursday, June 4th 2026 - 21:15 UTC
De la Espriella rejected the decision in a campaign statement and said his legal team had already requested that the measure be overturned
A Bogotá court ordered presidential candidate Abelardo de la Espriella and his party, Defensores de la Patria, to refrain from using the Colombian national football jersey at campaign events and in advertising, while it studies a constitutional protection action filed by a citizen. The provisional measure, issued on June 3 by the 120th Municipal Criminal Court, takes immediate effect and also covers social media and the press.
The action was filed by citizen Wilman Bocanegra Calderón, who asked that the candidate and his movement be ordered to stop using the jersey and other national-team symbols as campaign elements, to protect, among other things, “the right to equality, non-discrimination” and the right to elect and be elected. The court also ordered that the National Electoral Council and the Colombian Football Federation (FCF) be brought in to report on any role they may have in the case.
De la Espriella rejected the decision in a campaign statement and said his legal team had already requested that the measure be overturned. At the same time, he urged Colombians to wear the national jersey until June 21, arguing that the garment “does not belong to any political party, leader or campaign,” but represents “national pride, the union of Colombians and the hope of a country.”
