Liga MX falls to 23rd globally while leading CONCACAF club ranking
A statistical report from OPTA ranked Liga MX at 23rd place among the world’s football leagues, below lesser‑known competitions such as those in Japan, Poland and Denmark. European leagues dominate the top slots, with the Premier League, Bundesliga, LaLiga, Serie A and Ligue 1 leading, while Brazil and Argentina appear only in sixth and seventh places respectively.
In the CONCACAF club index, Mexican teams continue to dominate: Toluca tops the list with 1,283 points, followed by Tigres (1,270) and Cruz Azul (1,263). The United States’ MLS clubs also feature strongly, holding four positions inside the regional top‑10 – LAFC (4th), Inter Miami (5th), Nashville SC (6th) and Seattle Sounders (7th) – with Vancouver Whitecaps at ninth. Mexico’s América and Guadalajara sit lower, eighth and tenth.
Cancún FC president Giovanni Solazzi warned that the recent decision to eliminate promotion and relegation jeopardises the merit‑based structure of Mexican football. He said the club bought its franchise on the promise that promotion would return in summer 2026, investing heavily in infrastructure, and that the loss of a second‑division pathway could cut players’ salaries by up to 70%.
Entities: CONCACAF · Cancún FC · Giovanni Solazzi · Liga MX · OPTA · Toluca
Claims
What the coverage asserts, and how well corroborated each claim is across sources.
- [○ 1 SOURCE] Solazzi claimed players’ salaries could fall up to 70% without promotion. (Giovanni Solazzi, Cancún FC president)
- [○ 1 SOURCE] Club América is eighth and Guadalajara tenth in the CONCACAF ranking, while Pachuca is outside the top ten. (CONCACAF club ranking)
- [○ 1 SOURCE] Cancún FC president Giovanni Solazzi says the league’s decision to eliminate promotion and relegation undermines meritocracy and could lead to legal action. (Giovanni Solazzi, Cancún FC president)
- [○ 1 SOURCE] European leagues occupy the top five positions in the OPTA ranking: Premier League, Bundesliga, LaLiga, Serie A and Ligue 1. (OPTA report)
- [○ 1 SOURCE] In the CONCACAF club ranking, Toluca leads with 1,283 points, followed by Tigres with 1,270 points and Cruz Azul with 1,263 points. (CONCACAF club ranking)
- [○ 1 SOURCE] Brazil was ranked sixth and Argentina seventh in the OPTA league ranking. (OPTA report)
- [○ 1 SOURCE] MLS clubs occupy several top‑10 spots in the CONCACAF ranking, with LAFC fourth and Inter Miami fifth. (CONCACAF club ranking)
- [○ 1 SOURCE] OPTA ranked Liga MX 23rd in its list of the world's strongest football leagues, placing it outside the top 20. (OPTA report)
- [○ 1 SOURCE] Without promotion/relegation, players’ salaries could drop up to 70 percent. (Giovanni Solazzi, Cancún FC president)
- [○ 1 SOURCE] Tigres is second in the CONCACAF club ranking with 1,270 points. (CONCACAF club ranking)
- [○ 1 SOURCE] OPTA ranked Liga MX 23rd among global football leagues. (OPTA report)
- [○ 1 SOURCE] Brazil is ranked sixth and Argentina seventh in the OPTA global league ranking. (OPTA report)