Protesters to rally against World Cup sponsor Hyundai before Mexico game

Hyundai will be targeted by protesters at a rally before the group A game between Mexico and South Korea in Guadalajara on Thursday, due to the World Cup sponsor’s business dealings with the South American mining company Ternium. A 2025 report from environmental group Mighty Earth criticised Hyundai’s involvement in what they described as a “dirty steel supply chain”, as the South Korean motor company is a major buyer of iron ore from Ternium for use in steel production. Ternium has faced repeated criticisms for its destructive environmental impact and corporate governance policies from campaign groups, as well as its alleged links to the disappearance of two Mexican activists. A rally will take place at the Plaza de La Liberación in Guadalajara, to highlight the fate of Mexico’s so-called 130,000 disappeared, some of whom worked in the mining industry. Three years ago two men went missing in Guadalajara after being critical of Ternium for its role in the alleged destruction of rural areas. Ricardo Arturo Lagunes Gasca, a renowned human rights lawyer, and Antonio Díaz Valencia, leader of the Aquila Indigenous community in the state of Michoacán, disappeared after attending an anti-mining community meeting in January 2023. The Guardian reported eyewitnesses at the time stating that the two activists were threatened and followed by several men in cars and motorbikes after they left the meeting in Aquila and headed towards the neighbouring state of Colima. …