Just days before the biggest World Cup in history kicks off, Kansas City woke up to troubling news, a shooting less than five miles from where England will spend their summer.
Police were called to reports of shots fired on 79th Street and Troost Avenue at around 4am on Saturday, arriving to find a large crowd dispersing.
Three adult women had been struck by gunfire and were taken to hospital.
Law enforcement later received calls that six more people had been injured, also taken to nearby hospitals via private vehicles.
Kansas City police confirmed that all nine victims sustained non-life-threatening injuries. No suspects had been taken into custody as investigations continued.
The site of the shooting is roughly 4.6 miles from Swope Soccer Village, England’s designated training base for the World Cup.
The hotel where England’s squad will be staying is located even further away, approximately 15 miles from the scene.
Police were quick to stress that the incident had no connection to the World Cup whatsoever.
England’s players and staff were not in Kansas City at the time of the incident, as they are currently training in Florida ahead of their final warm-up match against Costa Rica in Orlando on Wednesday.
England FA declines to comment
The timing, however, has put a spotlight on gun violence in America just as the world prepares to arrive.
Kansas City mayor Quinton Lucas acknowledged the challenges posed by widespread access to firearms in the United States.
Lucas has pledged a strong law enforcement presence for all teams and VIPs throughout the tournament.
The city has secured a $17 million federal security grant ahead of the World Cup.
Kansas City is one of the tournament’s most high-profile base camp cities.
It will host England, Argentina, the Netherlands and Algeria, with up to 100,000 Argentine fans alone expected to travel there during the summer.
