Some talked about the need to hire expensive, proven players otherwise the team would be hard-pressed to compete in the "big league."
Felipe Apodaca, 21, said he had seen at Saturday's final Fernando Arce, a Tijuana-born midfielder who plays for the First Division team Santos Laguna and played in Mexico's national team that competed in the World Cup in South Africa.
"We asked him if he would come to the Xolos and he said, 'that would be good,' he didn't want to tell us more, but he smiled," said Apodaca, a member of the cheer squad that dubbed themselves "The Xolos Massacre."
Then there were the fans of the two most popular teams in Mexico, the Chivas de Guadalajara and América from Mexico City. They were glad that the Tijuana team will now be able to compete in these teams' same division. But how to show their allegiance? They wore T-shirts with the message: "Chivaxolos" and "Aguilaxolos."
The parade traveled along Revolución and Sixth and Seventh streets, past murals with messages such as "Tijuana Makes Me Happy" and "Despite everything, Tijuana moves" painted by local artists in response to the drug-related violence that claimed more than 2,300 lives in the city from 2008 to 2010.
The caravan reached Second Street and from there dropped down to the Río zone, with fans tirelessly chanting and dancing all the way.
"It's been a long time that something in Tijuana makes us so excited. I have never seen anything like this," said Mario Contreras, 48, a maker of leather goods who had walked the entire procession. "I'm very happy."
The police department organized a special operation during the parade but reported no problems.
Tijuana Mayor Carlos Bustamante, in a statement, said that the Xolos' promotion to the First Division would bring economic benefits to all sectors of the city.
"At the same time, we'll reap other benefits for our community," he continued, such as greater cohesion among the city's residents, a better image of Tijuana in the nation, more participation in soccer in all neighborhoods and more visitors to the region.
Around 7 p.m., authorities began to reopen downtown streets that had been closed for the parade. Many children and teens began returning to their cars with their parents or took the bus home, their smiles suggesting optimism for the future.
Omar.millan@sandiegored.com
