‘Promotion is active’ - La Federación Mexicana de Futbol asserts following lawsuit from Liga de Expansión Clubs

Amid ongoing controversy over the suspension of promotion and relegation in Mexican football, the Mexican Football Federation (FMF) has issued a formal response to an appeal filed with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) by ten Liga de Expansión clubs demanding the reinstatement of these mechanisms.

The suspension was agreed upon in April 2020, during the height of the pandemic, providing a six-season period during which Liga de Expansión clubs could focus on consolidating their projects without the sporting pressure of promotion and relegation. According to Íñigo Riestra, FMF’s Secretary General, this measure was requested by the clubs themselves to avoid bankruptcy, as many were operating at a deficit and facing precarious financial conditions.

“The FMF General Assembly approved this temporary suspension to protect the economic stability of the clubs,” Riestra explained in an official video. Additionally, a financial rescue fund was created at the clubs’ request to ensure their survival.

To complement this strategy, an Improvement Fund was established, distributing significant resources for infrastructure and strategic development within the Liga de Expansión teams—investments that can sometimes go under the radar. This fund mandates an annual investment of 20 million pesos (1,036,418 million) from 2020 onwards to modernize stadiums and enhance sporting facilities.

At the same time, in 2022, a Certification Committee was created to set administrative, sporting, and infrastructure requirements that clubs must meet to be eligible for promotion. Starting in the 2023 season, only certified clubs that win the Campeón de Campeones are eligible for promotion; however, so far, only two clubs have met these standards.

The 10 clubs involved in the appeal—Atlante, Morelia, Leones Negros, Atlético La Paz, Alebrijes, Cimarrones, Cancún, Mineros, Venados, and Tampico Madero—argue that the absence of promotion and relegation has negatively impacted their ability to secure commercial agreements and television broadcasting rights.

In summary, the FMF maintains that the suspension was a necessary measure to prevent the economic collapse of several clubs and that the pathway for promotion remains open, albeit conditioned on meeting certain criteria that only a few teams have fulfilled so far.

The legal action comes amid growing frustration among Liga de Expansión clubs, who claim that Liga MX has failed to provide transparency regarding the promotion and relegation system. The issue has been further complicated by ongoing controversies in Mexican football, particularly surrounding the topic of multi-club ownership.

There has been ongoing debate about whether reinstating promotion and relegation could raise the competitive level across all tiers of Mexican football. However, it is evident that Liga MX has presented significant obstacles for Liga de Expansión teams, many of which have spent recent years striving to meet the league’s demanding certification requirements.

"Promotion remains active through certification. A club will be promoted once at least four clubs are certified at the start of the season and one of them wins the Campeón de Campeones," reads the official statement posted on the FMF’s X account.

In 2020, due to the global crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Mexican football executives decided to temporarily suspend the promotion and relegation system in Liga MX. This decision was made to support franchise owners in the first division and strengthen Liga Expansión, with the idea that, years later, the system would return with a stronger second division. However, it seemed that this reform would remain permanent.

This decision mainly affected the teams in the second division. Teams like Atlante, Leones Negros de la UDG, Venados de Mérida, and Atlético Morelia are among those that have expressed their dissatisfaction in recent years with the suspension of promotion and relegation. But, according to Liga MX, these teams do not meet the necessary requirements to be First Division clubs. It's a stance that has been heavily criticized by executives from the mentioned teams, who have even taken the case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).