Liga de Expansión MX
The Liga de Expansión MX, also known as Liga de Desarrollo (Liga BBVA Expansión MX for sponsorship reasons), is a Mexican semi-professional football league founded in 2020 as part of the Mexican Football Federation's "Stabilization Project", which has the primary objective of rescuing the financially troubled teams from the Ascenso MX and prevent the disappearance of a second-tier league in Mexico, for which there will be no promotion and relegation during the following six seasons.[7] The project also attempts for Liga MX and former Ascenso MX teams to consolidate stable projects with strong administration, finances, and infrastructure.
 | |
| Founded | 24 April 2020 |
|---|---|
| Country | Mexico |
| Confederation | CONCACAF |
| Number of teams | 17 |
| Level on pyramid | 2 |
| Domestic cup(s) | Copa MX |
| Current champions | Tepatitlán (1st title) (Guardianes 2021) |
| Most championships | Tampico Madero Tepatitlán (1 title) |
| TV partners | Claro[1] ESPN[2] Fox Sports[3] Multimedios[4] Televisa[5] TVC Deportes[6] |
| Website | LigaBBVAExpansion.mx |
| Current: 2021–22 Liga de Expansión MX season | |
History
On 20 February 2020, the presidents of the Liga MX clubs, the Ascenso MX clubs and Mexican Football Federation executives had a meeting, in which different topics were discussed with the intent of strengthening the two main leagues in the country.[8]
On 26 June 2020, the league was officially presented, with the participation of 16 teams: Alebrijes de Oaxaca, Atlante, Atlético Morelia, Cancún, Celaya, Cimarrones de Sonora, Correcaminos UAT, Dorados de Sinaloa, Leones Negros UdeG, Mineros de Zacatecas, Tampico Madero, and Venados F.C. as Ascenso MX teams. Pumas Tabasco and Tapatío entered to the league as Liga MX affiliates.[9] Finally, on 17 July 2020, Tepatitlán and Tlaxcala were invited as Liga Premier expansion teams.[10]
Clubs
| Team | City | Stadium | Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Atlante | Mexico City | Ciudad de los Deportes | 33,000 |
| Atlético Morelia | Morelia, Michoacán | Morelos | 35,000 |
| Cancún | Cancún, Quintana Roo | Andrés Quintana Roo | 18,844 |
| Celaya | Celaya, Guanajuato | Miguel Alemán Valdés | 23,182 |
| Pumas Tabasco | Villahermosa, Tabasco | Olímpico de Villahermosa | 12,000 |
| Oaxaca | Oaxaca City, Oaxaca | Tecnológico de Oaxaca | 14,598 |
| Raya2 | Guadalupe, Nuevo León | BBVA | 53,500 |
| Sinaloa | Culiacán, Sinaloa | Dorados | 20,108 |
| Sonora | Hermosillo, Sonora | Héroe de Nacozari | 18,747 |
| Tampico Madero | Tampico/Ciudad Madero, Tamaulipas | Tamaulipas | 19,668 |
| Tapatío | Zapopan, Jalisco | Akron | 46,232 |
| Tepatitlán | Tepatitlán de Morelos, Jalisco | Gregorio "Tepa" Gómez | 8,085 |
| Tlaxcala | Tlaxcala City, Tlaxcala | Tlahuicole | 11,135 |
| UAT | Ciudad Victoria, Tamaulipas | Marte R. Gómez | 10,520 |
| U. de G. | Guadalajara, Jalisco | Jalisco | 55,020 |
| Venados | Mérida, Yucatán | Carlos Iturralde | 15,087 |
| Zacatecas | Zacatecas City, Zacatecas | Carlos Vega Villalba | 20,068 |
Champions
| Club | Winners | Runner-Up | Winning Seasons |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tampico Madero | 1 | 0 | Guardianes 2020 |
| Tepatitlán | 1 | 0 | Guardianes 2021 |
| Atlante | 0 | 1 | |
| Atlético Morelia | 0 | 1 |
Campeón de Campeones
| Club | Winners | Runner-Up | Winning Seasons |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tepatitlán | 1 | 0 | 2020–21 |
| Tampico Madero | 0 | 1 |
Managers
The current managers in the Liga de Expansión MX are:
| Nat. | Name | Team | Appointed | Time as manager |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
Paco Ramírez | Tepatitlán | 5 September 2019 | 2 years, 103 days |
|
Gerardo Espinoza | Tampico Madero | 27 November 2019 | 2 years, 20 days |
|
Carlos Gutiérrez | Venados | 10 December 2019 | 2 years, 7 days |
 |
Ricardo Valiño | Atlético Morelia | 26 June 2020 | 1 year, 174 days |
|
Israel Hernández | Celaya | 1 July 2020 | 1 year, 169 days |
|
Omar Alexis Moreno | Zacatecas | 1 July 2020 | 1 year, 169 days |
|
Gabriel Pereyra | Sonora | 3 July 2020 | 1 year, 167 days |
|
Mario García Covalles | Atlante | 20 July 2020 | 1 year, 150 days |
|
Rafael García | Sinaloa | 21 December 2020 | 361 days |
|
Alejandro Pérez | Pumas Tabasco | 21 December 2020 | 361 days |
|
Federico Vilar | Cancún | 1 June 2021 | 199 days |
|
Aldo de Nigris | Raya2 | 22 June 2021 | 178 days |
|
Juan Antonio Torres | Tlaxcala | 28 August 2021 | 111 days |
|
Alfonso Sosa | U. de G. | 7 September 2021 | 101 days |
|
Ricardo Cadena (Interim) | Tapatío | 20 September 2021 | 88 days |
|
Jorge Manrique (Interim) | Oaxaca | 1 October 2021 | 77 days |
|
Jorge Urbina (Interim) | UAT | 13 October 2021 | 65 days |
Top scorers
| Year | Name | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Guardianes 2020 | Alberto Alvarado Morín Lizandro Echeverría Guillermo Martínez Gustavo Ramírez |
UAT Atlante Celaya Atlético Morelia |
7 |
| Guardianes 2021 | Julio Cruz |
Oaxaca | 10 |
| Apertura 2021 |  Raúl Zúñiga |
Sinaloa | 12 |
References
- includes Claro Sports
- includes ESPN 2 and ESPN 3
- includes Fox Sports 2
- includes Canal 6
- includes TUDN
- includes TVC Deportes 2
- Enrique Martínez Villar (24 April 2020). "¡Se confirma! No habrá ascenso ni descenso en 6 años; aprueban Liga de Desarrollo". Mediotiempo. Retrieved 25 April 2020.
- "Comunicado de la LIGA MX / ASCENSO MX y la FMF". LIGA MX. 20 April 2020. Retrieved 25 April 2020.
- "Asamblea Ordinaria de Clubes del 26 de Junio del 2020". Liga BBVA MX (in Spanish). 26 June 2020. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
- "Comunicado de la LIGA MX sobre la LIGA de Expansión". Liga BBVA MX (in Spanish). 17 July 2020. Retrieved 17 July 2020.