>That said, there are some legitimate reasons to not sanction high altitude matches. Starting with -- surprise! -- the altitude. The human body loses 4% of its oxygen uptake capacity for every 1000 feet above sea level. 2500 meters = about 8200 feet. That means the players would be competing with ~68% of their oxygen capacity. In La Paz they would have barely half. To me that's significant and could easily distort the result. Futbol is a running game, not a wheezing endurance contest.

I know. I get sorojchi (altitude disease - headache and sometimes nausea) more often than not, when I visit La Paz or Potosí.

Under these circumstances, I try not to climb stairs quickly, and would not even think about running after a ball.

By the way, people often drink a tea which is outlawed in most countries, to combat sorojchi.