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All Set For The InterLiga 2009
The InterLiga is a yearly tournament between Mexican clubs to determine qualifying spots in the oldest club competition of the Americas, the Copa Libertadores.
Jan 2, 2009 3:55:44 AM
The sixth edition of the always controversial Torneo InterLiga will start this Friday, January 2, with the objective to determine the two Mexican clubs that will accompany San Luis, to the Copa Libertadores 2009.
Even if this is the main avenue for Mexican clubs to participate in South America’s premier club competition, the majority of teams are unconvinced with the tournament both in the economic and sporting aspects. Managers feel that their squads preparation ahead of the start of the season is halted, while club officials are left unsatisfied because they don’t generate anything in the economic aspect.
However, Mexican Football Federation president Justino Compeán has mentioned on many occasions that this is a “magnificent preseason” for the participating teams and that they will honor the seven-year contract for this tournament. The FMF has a standing contract with SUM (Soccer United Marketing), who are in charge of organizing the calendar, transportation, food and hotel of the Mexican clubs in the United States.
The InterLiga 2009 will be the penultimate edition of the event, since it falls on the sixth year of the contract. On this occasion, the tournament is highlighted by two local derby encounters in Group B — Clásico Tapatío and Súper Clásico.
InterLiga 2009
The tournament will be played from January 2 to 11, starting in Frisco and Houston, Texas, and concluding at Home Depot Center in Carson, California.
Eight clubs will take part with their selection based on the maximum number of points in the general table of classification in the Torneo Apertura 2008, excluding the overall leader of regular season competition (San Luis) which advances directly as “México 1” and those clubs that participated in the CONCACAF Champions League 2008-2009 (Atlante, Santos Laguna, UNAM and Cruz Azul).
Clubs participating in the Torneo InterLiga 2009:
(In order of classification)
1. Toluca
2. Tigres
3. Tecos
4. Chivas
5. Morelia
6. Atlas
7. Pachuca
8. América
The clubs are divided into two groups, alternated according to their table position in the general table of classification:
GROUP A — Toluca, Tecos, Morelia, Pachuca
GROUP B — Tigres, Guadalajara, Atlas, América
The first and second spots at the end of the first phase of group play will advance to the Final phase.
In the Final phase, the four teams will face each other as follows:
1st place Group A vs. 2nd place Group B
1st place Group B vs. 2nd place Group A
In case of a draw, a penalty shootout will be utilized.
The winners of the aforementioned Finals matches will represent México in the Copa Santander Libertadores de América 2009. Out of the two winners, qualifying as “México 2” will be the team with the most points during the first phase and the other team will qualify as “México 3.”
Calendar
Group A
Matchday 1: Friday, January 2 - Pizza Hut Park, Frisco, Texas
5 p.m. PT/ 7 p.m. CT/ 8 p.m. ET: Toluca vs. Monarcas
7:30 p.m. PT/ 9:30 p.m. CT/ 10:30 p.m. ET: Tecos vs. Pachuca
Group B
Matchday 2: Saturday, January 3 - Robertson Stadium, Houston, Texas
5 p.m. PT/ 7 p.m. CT/ 8 p.m. ET: Tigres vs. Atlas
7:30 p.m. PT/ 9:30 p.m. CT/ 10:30 p.m. ET: Chivas vs. América
Group A
Matchday 3: Monday, January 5 - Robertson Stadium, Houston, Texas
5 p.m. PT/ 7 p.m. CT/ 8 p.m. ET: Tecos vs. Monarcas
7:30 p.m. PT/ 9:30 p.m. CT/ 10:30 p.m. ET: Toluca vs. Pachuca
Group B
Matchday 4: Tuesday, January 6 - Pizza Hut Park, Frisco, Texas
5 p.m. PT/ 7 p.m. CT/ 8 p.m. ET: Tigres vs. América
7:30 p.m. PT/ 9:30 p.m. CT/ 10:30 p.m. ET: Chivas vs. Atlas
Group A
Matchday 5: Thursday, January 8 - Home Depot Center, Carson, California
6 p.m. PT/ 8 p.m. CT/ 9 p.m. ET: Monarcas vs. Pachuca
8:30 p.m. PT/ 10:30 p.m. CT/ 11:30 p.m. ET: Toluca vs. Tecos
Group B
Matchday 6: Friday, January 9 - Home Depot Center, Carson, California
6:30 p.m. PT/ 8:30 p.m. CT/ 9:30 p.m. ET: Atlas vs. América
9 p.m. PT/ 11 p.m. CT/ 12 p.m. ET: Tigres vs. Chivas
Final Phase
Matchday 7: Sunday, January 11 - Home Depot Center, Carson, California
Brief History
The InterLiga is a yearly tournament between Mexican clubs to determine qualifying spots for that country in South America's premier club competition, the Copa Libertadores. It is held held in January, during the off-season of the Primera División between the Torneos Apertura and Clausura.
It has been taking place since 2004. Prior to that year, Mexican clubs competed in two levels of competition — first against one another (Pre-prelibertadores), and then against clubs from Venezuela (Prelibertadores) — for spots in the Copa Libertadores.
In 2004, México and Venezuela were granted automatic entries to the Copa Libertadores for the first time. The FMF, in conjunction with the US Soccer Federation and CONCACAF, decided to create a qualifying league for its two automatic spots, and the first InterLiga was held that January.
The Federación Mexicana de Fútbol has a seven-year contract with SUM (Soccer United Marketing) to utilize this tournament to determine the participating teams. This year will be the sixth edition of the InterLiga.
In the 2008 edition, club América emerged as champions of the tournament and Atlas as runner-up.
--César García covers México for Goal.com.
Contact him with any questions or comments at: cesar.garcia@goal.com.
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