Flamengo on alert: Mexico FA urges FIFA over Libertadores return | OneFootball

President of the Mexican Federation revealed that he is pushing to play in Conmebol tournaments

Liga MX has once again expressed its desire to take part in the Libertadores and the Copa Sudamericana. The body that runs Mexican football intends to resume talks with Concacaf and FIFA to obtain authorization and, consequently, put its clubs up against the top teams in South America.

WHAT DOES LIGA MX WANT?

According to information published by the Mexican newspaper ‘El Universal’, Liga MX wants to restore international exchange and raise the level of local clubs. To do so, Francisco Iturbide, president of the competition, confirmed that there will be new attempts to secure a guest spot in the tournaments organized by Conmebol.

The executive revealed that Liga MX and the Mexican Football Federation have already made requests to Concacaf and FIFA. However, so far, the response has been negative. Even so, the idea is not to give up, even if an appeal to FIFA is necessary.

— Liga MX and the Mexican Federation made requests to both Concacaf and FIFA to participate as guests, especially in club tournaments. The response was negative. The reality is that we have not been allowed to return to South American competitions —, Iturbide said.

— The refusal came both from the confederation and from a guideline FIFA is currently following, under which they do not want confederation competitions to include different club teams from different confederations —, explained the president of Liga MX.

WHEN WAS MEXICO’S LAST APPEARANCE?

Mexican clubs have not played in the Copa Libertadores since 2016. In that edition, Pumas UNAM, Toluca, and Puebla represented Liga MX in the competition. Since then, the country’s teams have been limited to tournaments organized by Concacaf.

Despite the recent absence, Mexican football has an important history in the Libertadores. Cruz Azul, Chivas, and Tigres all reached the tournament final, but none of the three managed to win the title. In the Copa Sudamericana, on the other hand, Mexico has already had a champion. In 2006, Pachuca defeated Colo-Colo (CHI) and lifted the competition’s trophy.

COULD FLAMENGO HAVE NEW OPPONENTS?

If Liga MX gets authorization to return to Conmebol tournaments, the scenario could once again lead to matchups between Mexican and Brazilian clubs. That way, teams like Flamengo could face opponents again that have been absent from the South American calendar for a decade.

WHAT IS THE AUTHOR’S OPINION?

— I think it’s a really cool idea, but it would require an overall overhaul of the calendar. Imagine Flamengo playing in Mexico on a Wednesday and then, on Sunday, facing Grêmio in Porto Alegre? It’s very exhausting and almost inhumane —, said Pedro Paulo Catonho, journalist for Coluna do Fla.

— Mexican teams have investment levels similar to Brazilian clubs and would have a great chance of ending our country’s monopoly, which has won every Libertadores since 2019. Our last memory against Mexican teams was a good one, with the Dérbi das Américas title over Cruz Azul in December last year —, Pedro concluded.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.