Football in Mexico

Toluca playing against Guadalajara in the Estadio Nemesio Diez

Men's football has been played professionally in Mexico since the early 1900s, inaugurated by club C.F. Pachuca. The first women's professional football league Liga MX Femenil was announced in December 2016[7] and the inaugural season started the following year.[8] The development of women's football has occurred in waves since the 1950s.[9]

Since 1996, the country has played two split seasons (Apertura and Clausura) instead of a traditional long season. This system is common throughout Latin America.[10] There are two separate playoff and league divisions. After many years of calling the regular seasons as "Verano" (Summer) and "Invierno" (Winter); Liga MX (historically Primera División de México, Mexico First League Division) changed the names of the competition, and opted for a traditional name of Apertura and Clausura (opening and closing). The Apertura division begins in the middle of Mexico's summer and ends before the official start of winter. The Clausura division begins during the New Year, and concludes in the spring season.

Mexico's men's football has four tiers of clubs in the following order of level of competition: Liga MX, Ascenso MX, Segunda División de México, and Tercera División de México. Promotion and relegation are used by the Mexican Football Federation (FMF) to advance (promote) a lesser tier club into competition of like quality their aggregate percentage score warrants play in a higher competition tier. They replace the club that is demoted (relegated) to the next lower tier level based on their aggregate. Promotion and relation take place after the Clausura season has ended.

Mexico's most successful men's clubs have been América with 13 Clausura championships, Guadalajara with 12, Toluca 10, and Cruz Azul 8.[3] As of May 2018, Guadalajara (commonly known as Chivas) and Tigres are the most successful clubs on the women's side, each winning a championship during the inaugural season of Liga MX Femenil. Both championship matches set new world records for attendance at a women's football league match with 32,466 fans in attendance at the Apertura final[11] and 51,211 at the Closura final match.[12]

National teams

Main articles: Mexico national football team and Mexico women's national football team

A Mexican soccer fan

National football team fans at the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia

The Mexico men's national team twice finished as runners-up at the Copa América. In 1999, Mexico beat Brazil 4–3 to win the FIFA Confederations Cup. Mexico won the title at the 2005 FIFA U-17 World Championship in Peru, and won the title at the 2011 FIFA U-17 World Cup in Mexico. Mexico has reached the World Cup quarter-finals twice. The team were gold medalists at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. Players from Mexico have joined teams in Europe, including Jared Borgetti, Rafael Márquez, Gerardo Torrado, Cuauhtémoc Blanco, Nery Castillo, Carlos Salcido, Ricardo Osorio, Pável Pardo, Andrés Guardado, Guillermo Franco, Carlos Vela, Giovani dos Santos, Omar Bravo, Aaron Galindo, Héctor Moreno, Francisco Javier Rodríguez, Francisco Fonseca, Javier Hernández (commonly referred to as "Chicharito"), Pablo Barrera, Efraín Juárez, Jesús Corona, Héctor Herrera, Miguel Layún, Raúl Jiménez, Marco Fabian and Diego Reyes the most recents.

Mexico's men's national team have achieved other significant feats such as the most CONCACAF Gold Cups with 11 trophies. Mexico has hosted two FIFA World Cups, in 1970 and 1986. Estadio Azteca is the biggest stadium in the world to have hosted two World Cup finals and is one of the largest stadiums in the world. Mexico will co-host the 2026 FIFA World Cup along with Canada and United States several matches will take place in Mexico City, Monterrey and Guadalajara.

The Mexico women's national football team was officially formed ahead of the 1999 FIFA Women's World Cup played in the United States. However, in 1970 an unofficial team Mexico finished third in an unofficial Women's World Cup held in Italy.[9][13] In 1971, the team hosted an unofficial women's World Cup and reached the final, only to lose to Denmark 3–0. An estimated 110,000 people attended the final at Estadio Azteca.[14]

In the early 1900s, football was used as a method to "indoctrinate modern labor practices" such as teamwork and competition within a set of rules upon the unskilled workers.[15] It is believed by some that football was introduced in Mexico by Cornish miners at the end of the 19th century.[15] By 1902 a five-team league emerged with a strong English influence.[16][17]

Many of the early football teams were affiliated with corporations.[18]

• Women's football in Mexico
• Mexican football league system