Liga MX Apertura Power Rankings

Last Updated on Setembro 18, 2026 12:42 pm by Erwin Noguera

Four days ago, Chivas led the Liga MX Apertura. Toluca then played an outstanding match, won, and took the top spot by two points, with the best attack and goal difference in Mexico.

Tomorrow, América hosts Chivas in the Clásico Nacional. Second plays third, one point apart, and the winner may well leave the weekend leading the tournament.

Enquanto isso, five clubs are tied on 13 points, and under this season’s format, the line between eighth and ninth runs straight through the middle of them.

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These rankings weigh three things: points on the board, goal difference over eight rounds, and how many matches a club has played. They aren’t the table, and where they differ, the reason is stated.

1. Toluca

19 points from eight. Eighteen goals scored, six conceded, +12, the best figures in all three columns.

The Leagues Cup champions have converted continental form into domestic control. They have lost once, they scored more than two goals a game, and they have the meanest defense in the division alongside Chivas and América.

The 5-2 dismantling of Atlas in Jornada 8 was the statement, and winning the game in hand turned a share of second into a two-point lead.

The case against: fixture load. Toluca have played more football than anyone in Mexico this calendar year, and the squad that won a continental trophy in August is the same one being asked to hold a title race through November. This season’s shortened Liguilla helps them more than any other club.

2. Guadalajara

17 points, +9, one defeat in eight.

Chivas climbed to the summit with a 3-0 win over Pumas, a Santiago Sandoval brace and a Bryan González goal, and have now lost the lead only because Toluca had a match in hand rather than because of anything they did.

Five wins, two draws, one loss is the most stable record in the league. Their fifteen goals scored and six conceded are almost identical to América’s.

The case against: they must go to the Estadio Banorte tomorrow. A Clásico Nacional away from home, against a side that has played a game fewer and will want a response to losing its unbeaten record, is the hardest single fixture on their remaining calendar.

3. América

16 points from seven, a game in hand on everyone above them, and +9.

This is the ranking that requires the most explanation, because América have just lost three times in ten days: twice in Houston at the Leagues Cup and then 4-3 at Cruz Azul in the Clásico Joven, ending their domestic unbeaten run.

They are still third here because of the arithmetic. Sixteen points from seven matches is a better rate than Chivas’s seventeen from eight. Win the game in hand, and they are level with Toluca at the top.

The case against: three defeats in ten days is a run rather than a blip, and the fixture that follows it is the Clásico Nacional. If they lose tomorrow, this ranking looks generous by Monday.

4. Cruz Azul

15 points, but sixteen goals scored and fourteen conceded, a goal difference of just +2.

The most volatile side of the top four. A fortnight ago, we described their position as the most serious problem in the division after three straight defeats. They have since beaten the team that was top of the table, in a Clásico, 4-3.

That scoreline is the club in miniature. They will beat anybody, and they will concede to anybody. Only three sides in the entire league have conceded more than fourteen while sitting above the cut line, and none of them are anywhere near fourth.

The case against: the defense. Five wins and three defeats with no draws in eight matches is not the record of a settled team; it is the record of a team that plays every match at full speed and sometimes loses.

5. Pachuca

Tenth in the table on 11 points. Fifth here, and the gap is deliberate.

Pachuca have a goal difference of +5, better than every club in that five-team logjam above them, better than León (+2), Tijuana (+2), Puebla (0) and Atlas (-2). They scored thirteen and conceded eight.

They are the best underlying team outside the top four, and they are on the wrong side of the qualification line. Three draws in eight matches is what separates them from a comfortable sixth; two of those turned into points they should have banked.

The case against: eleven points is eleven points, and admiring a team’s goal difference does not qualify it for anything. They need results in the next fortnight, not underlying numbers.

6. Querétaro

13 points from seven, +3, and a match in hand.

The best-placed member of the traffic jam, because they have played fewer games than León, Puebla and Atlas on the same points total. Ten scored, seven conceded, four wins from seven.

They have been one of the quieter stories of the Apertura and are currently fifth in the table with the schedule still in their favor.

The case against: they were around ten points when we last checked in, and the rise has been steady rather than spectacular. A 10-goal return in seven matches is thin if the defense slips.

7. Tijuana

13 points from seven, +2, also with a game in hand.

Four wins, one draw, two defeats. Tijuana sits seventh in the table and would qualify comfortably if the tournament ended today, and unlike Puebla and Atlas they have a fixture in reserve to improve on it.

The case against: ten goals in seven matches, and a +2 difference that could vanish in one bad afternoon. This is a qualification profile rather than a contending one.

8. Monterrey

Twelfth in the table on 10 points, from only seven matches, with a goal difference of +3.

Another deliberate placement above the table. Monterrey have scored thirteen: more than Querétaro, Tijuana, León or Puebla, and conceded ten, and they have played less football than most of the clubs ahead of them.

Three wins, one draw, three defeats from seven are an inconsistent start for a club of their resources, but the underlying numbers are those of a top eight side, not a twelfth-placed one.

The case against: they have been saying this about Monterrey for several tournaments. At some point the results must arrive, and the cut line is only nine rounds away.

9. León

13 points, +2, sixth in the table on eight matches played.

León are in the qualification places, and that counts for something. Eleven scored, nine conceded, four wins from eight.

They rank below three clubs they lead in the table because all three have either a better goal difference or a match in hand, and León have neither. Their position is real, but it has no margin built into it.

The case against: they were around ten points a fortnight ago and are now on thirteen, which is progress. They are also one of five teams on that number, and the tiebreakers do not favor them.

10. Puebla

13 points, goal difference of exactly zero, eighth in the table.

Puebla currently holds the final qualification place, and they hold it with ten goals scored and ten conceded across eight matches. That is the definition of a team sitting precisely on the line.

They opened Jornada 9 tonight against Atlante.

The case against: everything. A zero-goal difference in eighth with nine rounds left is the most precarious position in the league, and Atlas are level on points with a game to play.

Below the Line

Atlas (13 points, -2) are ninth and level with four clubs above them, which under this format means they are currently eliminated rather than in a play-in place. Conceding fourteen in eight matches is the problem, and the 5-2 at Toluca accounts for a lot of it.

Pumas (11, -1) have a Clásico defeat to Chivas and a goal difference that does not support a climb.

Necaxa (8), Tigres (7), Atlante (7), Atlético de San Luis (6), and Santos (4) are all realistically playing for next season already. Tigres on seven points, with one win in eight, is the most surprising collapse in the division: four draws and three defeats from a squad that should be contesting the top four.

Juárez have zero points from eight matches and a goal difference of -19. Four goals scored, twenty-three conceded. Under the old regulation this would be a relegation emergency; under Article 35 it carries no sporting consequence whatsoever.

That system is now under formal scrutiny. Mexico’s National Antitrust Commission opened an investigation this week into potential monopolistic practices in domestic football, prompted by supporter complaints about the closed-league arrangement. It will not change anything this Apertura, but it is the first institutional challenge to the model since Article 35 was written down.

The Cut Line Is the Whole Story

Fifth through ninth are separated by nothing. Querétaro, León, Tijuana, Puebla and Atlas are all on 13 points. Two of them have a game in hand; three do not.

Under the format we are playing this season, four of those five qualify, and one is finished. There is no Reclassification to catch the club that misses, and there is no relegation to punish anyone below them either. Ninth place is simply the end of the tournament.

Pachuca on 11 and Monterrey on 10 are close enough to make it a seven-team fight for four places, and both have better goal differences than most of the clubs they are chasing.

What Jornada 9 Decides

América vs. Chivas, Saturday, Estadio Banorte.Second against third, one point between them, and América with a match in hand on the entire top two. A home win puts them level with Toluca on points, having played the same number of games. A Chivas win restores their lead and leaves América with three defeats in a fortnight.

Toluca vs. Santos. The league leaders against the club with four points. Anything other than a comfortable Toluca win would be the result of the weekend.

Pachuca x Tijuana is the most consequential match nobody will discuss, tenth against seventh, and the winner moves meaningfully in the qualification race.

Atlas x Pumas are two clubs who need the points more than the table suggests.

Toluca are the best team in Mexico right now, and the numbers are not close. Everything behind them is a two-point argument, and the eighth-place line is where this tournament will be decided.