Franco Armani and Atlético Nacional Rode Out a 7.4 Magnitude Earthquake at a Cali Hotel

Winning or losing a soccer match can suddenly become the least of your worries. That's what Franco Armani felt just hours after Atlético Nacional's defeat to América de Cali, when the ground shook violently and left him, along with the entire squad, going through some tense moments at a hotel in the city.

The Argentine goalkeeper and his teammates had fallen in matchday 4 of the Colombian league against the tournament leader. As is often the case when playing away from home, the plan was to rest that night in Cali before heading back to Medellin. Nobody imagined that the early morning hours would bring a jolt far bigger than the result of the match.

The 7.4 magnitude earthquake that shook that part of the country caught a good part of the team still in bed. Some were already getting up to go to breakfast when the building started shaking.

We also went through a complicated moment, because it caught us in Cali, we stayed to rest after the match with América. In the morning we were sleeping, only some of us were just getting up to go to breakfast and the earthquake hit usFranco Armani

What Armani describes is no small detail given the magnitude of the tremor: an earthquake of that intensity isn't something you experience every day, let alone far from home, in the middle of a road trip. The goalkeeper himself admitted that, in the middle of the shaking, the fear inside the hotel was very real.

Honestly a difficult moment because the hotel shook a lot, some of us had time to get downstairs, others didn't. Nothing serious happened to us. In that moment you were expecting the hotel to come down because it was very strongFranco Armani

Fortunately, nobody within the Nacional group was hurt. Not everyone in the region was so lucky: the earthquake forced authorities to declare a national emergency given the number of people affected and the material losses left in its wake.

A message beyond the result

With the scare behind him, Armani wanted to send a message of support to those who did suffer the consequences of the earthquake. The player spoke on his own behalf and also for the entire squad.

From Nacional's side, from the players, to support, to come together for this cause. I know Colombia is very united and I want to send a lot of strength to the familiesFranco Armani

With the scare now behind them, Nacional's focus has turned back to soccer. The team will return to action on August 19, looking to leave behind both the loss to América and the scare they experienced far from Medellin.