The dispute surrounding the lack of promotion and relegation in Mexican football has reached the national Senate, where lawmakers said a reform aimed at bringing back the system will be introduced on Tuesday.
Senator Clemente Castañeda, a member of the Movimiento Ciudadano party, presented the proposal with support from leaders of other political groups, including Ignacio Mier from the governing Morena party.
Castañeda said the measure is essential to formally recognize sporting achievement as a responsibility that national sports organizations must respect and to establish promotion and relegation within Mexican legislation.
“By removing the opportunity to win promotion, they did more than alter a competition rule. They also closed a route through which players, employees, and sporting projects could develop in a country that needs to create more opportunities,” Castañeda said.
Castañeda said invitations were sent to Liga MX president Francisco Iturbide and Mexican football commissioner Mikel Arriola, but both declined to attend.
The Mexican Football Federation was asked for a statement but did not respond.
Unfulfilled commitments
In April 2020, the owners of Mexico’s leading clubs abolished promotion and relegation, pointing to financial problems at second-tier teams that had become more severe during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The initial arrangement called for a five-year suspension. The system was expected to return last year, allowing one club to move up and another to drop down after the latest season concluded in May.
That return did not happen. Several second-tier clubs began demonstrations last year, demanding that football officials fulfill the original agreement. The Mexican Football Federation argued at the time that reinstatement was not feasible because the required financial conditions had not been achieved.
“The pandemic explanation was only a pretext. They always intended to end promotion and relegation for good,” said Alberto Castellanos, president of U de G Leones Negros, one of the clubs involved in the campaign.
Strict obstacles and frustrated investors
Liga MX introduced demanding conditions for second-tier sides, requiring them to complete a certification procedure before becoming eligible for the top division. Among the criteria was a stadium capacity of 30,000 spectators, a threshold that some current first-tier clubs do not meet.
Ending promotion also had a direct impact on investors entering Mexican football. Cancún FC was purchased in 2022 by a group that included former Houston Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow, with the expectation that promotion would eventually be restored.
“We recognized enormous promise when we acquired the club, including possibilities that many people in Mexico sometimes overlook. But the present structure encourages complacency, which is deeply disappointing,” said club president Giovani Solazzi.
Despite objections from some second-division owners, Mexican football officials removed promotion and relegation entirely from this year’s regulations. Neither the national federation nor Liga MX explained the change.
Growing public opposition
The owner of Club América, one of Mexico’s strongest clubs and a highly influential force in domestic football, said last month that the system should return once suitable conditions are in place.
“I support promotion and relegation. People often compare Mexico with Spain, England, and Portugal, where the system operates successfully. However, those nations have strong second divisions, while we have not yet developed a similarly stable league at that level,” he said.
After promotion was formally removed, protests spread across second-division fixtures. Some players remained still following kick-off, while others exchanged the ball without attempting to launch attacks.
“I came to Mexico on 8 June believing promotion would be available and joined Morelia because the club was competing for it. We were later told it would not happen,” said Spanish goalkeeper Roberto Galán. “We protested, and the clubs received penalties, but the demonstrations will carry on because we are entitled to express our position.”
Supporter groups have also attended matches in protest shirts to publicly demonstrate their dissatisfaction.
Last week, Mexico’s National Antitrust Commission opened an inquiry into whether the country’s football league may be engaging in monopolistic conduct linked to the removal of promotion and relegation.
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