Mayra Madrigal
MLS teams are outperforming Liga MX teams, just as the U.S. National Team has outperformed the Mexican National Team in recent times. The experience of Liga MX, which was professionalized in 1943, has not been enough to give Major League Soccer a fight, a competition that has been constantly evolving since it played its first season in 1996.
For a long time, the Mexican national team was known as the “Concacaf Giant” because it was the rival to beat in the entire confederation, since it had the best league and many players from different leagues in the world, as well as the same Mexican players who began to play in Europe. This increased the level of the “Tricolor” team and was reflected in titles.
Statistically, Mexico is still the most winning team in CONCACAF with 11 Copa de Oro trophies on its record, which were won in 1965, 1971, 1977, 1993, 1996, 1996, 1998, 2003, 2009, 2011, 2015 and 2019. It is seconded by the United States, evidencing its soccer growth, as in the last two decades, the U.S. National Team has won six of its seven Gold Cup titles: 1991, 2002, 2005, 2007, 2013, 2017 and 2021.
2021 was a difficult year for the Mexican National Team, which suffered three defeats against The United States in international tournaments: the Nations League final, the Copa de Oro final and the World Cup qualifiers. The Aztec national team is also concerned about the growth of Canada, which currently leads the CONCACAF hexagonal final round to Qatar, with the United States in second place and Mexico in third.
The two northern countries have focused on the academies of MLS teams and have begun to export young players and also to integrate European soccer stars into their ranks, these being key players to their significant progress.
MLS Teams in Concachampions
The Concachampions quarterfinals were played this week, with four teams from MLS, three from Liga MX, and one from Guatemala. Three of the four MLS teams won their home games: New York City FC beat Comunicaciones 3-1, Seattle Sounders beat León 3-0 and New England Revolution beat Pumas 3-0. The only loser was Montreal — they lost to Cruz Azul by a score of 1-0 at the Azteca Stadium.
The difference is big if we talk about titles, but the dominance of the American league teams could begin this year, thanks to the present they are living at the moment. Liga MX teams have won 37 CONCACAF Champions League titles, while MLS teams have only two titles.
