Mexican Senate Pushes to Reopen Liga MX's Top Flight

A bipartisan group of Mexican senators has proposed a reform to restore promotion and relegation in Liga MX, Mexico's top soccer league. The proposal, spearheaded by Senator Clemente Castañeda, aims to make sporting merit the basis for participation in national sports associations.

The move targets amendments to the Ley General de Cultura Física y Deporte, Mexico's general law governing physical culture and sport. Liga MX suspended promotion and relegation in April 2020 due to financial pressures from the COVID-19 pandemic, but instead of restoring it after five years as initially planned, the league made the change permanent.

The proposed legislation avoids directly mandating specific league structures, but would make a closed system legally incompatible with Mexico's governing framework for sport. Representatives from second-division clubs have voiced support for the proposal, arguing that the current closed system creates barriers not just for clubs but also for players and community-level football initiatives.