Mexican second-division clubs strike after FMF cancels promotion and relegation

Three matches on the first day of the Mexican Second Division were disrupted by player strikes, as clubs in the Liga de Expansión MX—the second tier below Liga MX—protest a decision by the Mexican Football Federation (FMF). The governing body's move to cancel promotions and relegations between the First and Second Divisions has sparked widespread anger among lower-division clubs.

Match Disruptions

On Friday and Saturday nights, three opening-day fixtures were affected:

• Zacatecas Mineros vs. Correcaminos
• Tlaxcala vs. Leones Negros
• Morelia vs. Atlético La Paz

In each match, players from both teams made no attempt to advance with the ball or recover it during the first minute of play. In two of the three strikes, the referee intervened, explaining to the captains that they were still required to play. In all cases, normal play resumed after the first minute elapsed.

The Mexican Federation has not yet responded publicly. However, a Mexican football news account posted a video on X—viewed nearly 400,000 times—stating that "the protests in Liga Expansión are now impossible to ignore."

Background: The Closed First Division

The Mexican First Division has been closed since 2020, a decision initially taken in response to the coronavirus pandemic. The FMF eliminated the promotion and relegation system, citing the need to promote young player development and ensure financial stability for top-division clubs. This allowed Liga MX teams to turn profits and attract high-profile players in recent years, including Sergio Ramos, Keylor Navas, James Rodríguez, and Aaron Ramsey.

Legal Challenge and CAS Ruling

Six Second Division clubs—Atlético La Paz, Atlético Morelia, Cancún FC, Mineros de Zacatecas, Venados FC, and Unión de Guadalajara—filed a lawsuit challenging the closed league structure. In September 2025, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) ruled in their favor, confirming that promotion and relegation systems between the First and Second Divisions would be reactivated starting from the 2026–2027 season.

Federation's Response

Despite the CAS ruling, the reality this season is different. Mexican media reported that less than 24 hours before the start of the Liga MX opening tournament a week ago, the FMF—which opposed the CAS decision—published the championship regulations confirming the elimination of promotion and relegation.

Clubs' Reaction

The 18 First Division clubs will remain in their championship at the end of the season, a decision that has infuriated lower-division teams.

"We tell our supporters very clearly: we are not sitting idly by," wrote Leones Negros, based in Guadalajara, in a statement. "On the contrary, we are already defending the rights of all Mexican clubs to sporting merit before the competent judicial authorities."

The Principle of Sporting Merit

Sporting merit is central to the clubs' demands. In a 2021 statement, FIFA and the six global football confederations defined the sport's operational principles: "The universal principles of sporting merit, solidarity, promotion and relegation, and subsidiarity form the foundation of the football pyramid."

This declaration raises questions in the Mexican context, where the First Division is moving closer to a closed league model similar to Major League Soccer (MLS) in the United States.