Sao Paulo FC bus carrying more than 80kg of marijuana

Published August 13th, 2026 - 11:50 GMT
Sao Paulo vs Bolivar game
Sao Paulo's forward #11 Ferreira and Bolivar's Argentine forward #99 Damian Batallini fight for the ball during the first leg of the Copa Sudamericana round of 16 football match between Bolivia's Bolivar and Brazil's Sao Paulo, at the Hernando Siles stadium in La Paz, on August 11, 2026. (Photo by Jorge BERNAL / AFP)

ALBAWABA - Bolivian police discovered more than 80kg of marijuana on the Sao Paulo football team bus during their Copa Sudamericana trip, three people were arrested.

Cosmos, the transport company which provided the buses to the club said that the team did not use the bus that had the marijuana in it, instead, it was assigned to another coach, and that the Bolivian drivers were to blame for the contraband.

The bus was initially meant to drive the team around during their stay in Santa Cruz was searched by authorities at Villa Tunari in Cochabamba, an area known for coca production in central Bolivia.

There, Bolivian authorities found 65 rectangular packages containing a greenish substance hidden in shopping bags, which later tests confirmed as marijuana.

Sao Paulo FC is set to face Bolivar in the round of 16 in the Copa Sudamericana, the South American equivalent of the Europa League.