Mexican soccer banned promotion and relegation. Senators may bring it back

The debate over the absence of promotion and relegation in Mexican soccer has reached the floor of the country’s Senate, where officials announced that a legislative reform to restore the system will be proposed on Tuesday.

Senator Clemente Castañeda of the Movimiento Ciudadano party put forward the proposal, backed by representatives from other party leaderships, including Ignacio Mier of the ruling Morena party.

Castañeda stated that the initiative is critical for “expressly incorporating sporting merit among the obligations that national sports associations must observe” and ensuring promotion and relegation are enshrined in Mexican law.

“When they closed off the possibility of promotion, they didn’t just change a sporting rule; they also restricted a path for players, staff, and sports projects to grow in a country that needs to open up opportunities,” Castañeda said.

The senator said that she invited the president of the Liga MX, Francisco Iturbide, and the commissioner of the Mexican football, Mikel Arriola, and they declined.

The Associated Press contacted the Mexican Federation for comment but did not receive a response.

Broken promises

Owners of Mexican top-flight teams eliminated promotion and relegation in April 2020, citing financial difficulties among second-division clubs that were exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Under the original plan, the suspension was set for five years, with the system scheduled for reinstatement last year so that a team could earn promotion and another face relegation at the end of the most recent season in May of this year.

However, reinstatement never materialized. Starting last year, several second-division clubs began protesting to demand that authorities honor the agreement. At the time, the Mexican Football Federation stated that returning to the system was impossible because the necessary economic conditions did not yet exist.

“The whole pandemic thing was a sham; they always knew they were going to permanently shut down promotion and relegation,” said Alberto Castellanos, president of U de G Leones Negros, one of the protesting teams.

High barriers and disillusioned investors

Liga MX imposed stringent requirements on second-division teams, mandating a certification process before they could aspire to play in the top tier. These rules included a venue capacity requirement of 30,000 seats – a standard not even met by all active first-division clubs.

The elimination of promotion directly affected new investors in Mexican soccer. Cancún FC was acquired in 2022 by an investment group led by figures like former Houston Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow on the premise that promotion would return.

“When we bought the team, we saw great potential – potential that often even Mexicans don’t see – but the current system fosters mediocrity; it’s very sad,” said Giovani Solazzi, the team’s president.

Facing pushback from some second-division owners, Mexican soccer authorities completely removed the promotion and relegation system from the regulations this year. Neither the Federation nor Liga MX provided an explanation for the decision.

Public outcry

The owner of Club América – one of Mexico’s most powerful clubs and arguably its most influential decision-maker – stated last month that he supports reinstating the system, provided the right conditions are met.

“I am in favor of promotion and relegation. Everyone makes comparisons, pointing out that it exists in Spain, England, or Portugal; however, those countries have very solid second divisions, whereas here, we haven’t managed to build that kind of solid second-division league,” he said.

Once promotion was officially scrapped, widespread protests broke out during second-division matches. Players responded on the pitch by standing motionless after the opening whistle or passing the ball passively without attacking.

“I arrived in Mexico on 8 June under the premise that there would be promotion – joining Morelia, a team contending for promotion – but then we were notified that it wasn’t happening,” said Spanish goalkeeper Roberto Galán. “That’s why we protested and the clubs were sanctioned, but the protests will continue because we have the right to make our voices heard.”

Fan groups have also shown up at stadiums wearing protest shirts to voice their discontent.

And last week, Mexico’s National Antitrust Commission (CNA) launched an investigation into potential monopolistic practices in the Mexican league centering on the absence of a promotion and relegation system.