The Senate of the Republic is drafting a bill to reintroduce promotion and relegation in Mexican soccer, following a roundtable discussion attended by representatives of teams from the Expansion League and staff from the National Antitrust Commission.
During the meeting, it was announced that Senator Clemente Castañeda will bring a reform proposal to the full Senate to explicitly incorporate athletic merit among the obligations of national sports associations.
The bill provides for promotion and relegation to be enshrined in Mexican law, to ensure competition among the sport’s different divisions.
Castañeda explained that the proposal does not intend for the Senate to administer soccer or replace sports authorities, but rather to establish rules that allow for a balance based on competition, merit, and opportunity.
The meeting was also marked by the absence of Mikel Arriola, commissioner of the Mexican Soccer Federation, and Francisco Iturbide, president of Liga MX, who had been invited to participate in the roundtable discussion to address the suspension of promotion and relegation.
However, neither of them responded to the Senate’s invitation. According to information presented during the meeting, they also did not confirm their attendance despite having been summoned.
Representatives from Expansion League clubs did attend the meeting, as did staff from the National Antitrust Commission, an agency under the Ministry of Economy.
This agency’s participation comes after it made public an investigation related to professional soccer, based on complaints from fans regarding the suspension of promotion and relegation.
With the initiative announced by Castañeda, the issue will return to the legislative arena and seek to enshrine sporting merit in law as the criterion for determining promotion and relegation among the various divisions of Mexican soccer.
