We are down to the Final Four in the 2023 Leagues Cup Tuesday night — Philadelphia Union vs. Inter Messi Miami and Monterrey vs. Nashville. Three of the four will earn berths in next year’s CONCACAF Champions Cup tournament.
That means Liga MX, who had 18 of the tournament’s 47 teams (38%), have just one semifinalist left (25%). If you’ve been watching Twitter (err, X?) lately, you’ve seen Mexican teams and Liga MX itself complaining about their disadvantages through the past four weeks.
Hey, I completely get it. Mexican teams are frustrated that they are playing nothing but away matches in Leagues Cup, and some teams have had very long travel schedules between group and knockout matches. Some teams had matches rescheduled due to weather and plane mechanical malfunctions, some teams aren’t getting the best food on the road, and for what should be the premier club competition for North America. (Sorry CONCACAF Cup), Leagues Cup needs a lot of tweaking before the 2024 edition to make everyone happy.
Liga MX wants a share of the home matches in the 2024 edition, and for fairness’ sake, it’s hard to argue that. But if Liga MX wants to play hardball, and refuse to commit to 2024, MLS Commissioner Don Garber and his AppleTV taskmasters need to pick up the red phone and make the call.
Leagues Cup prize money explained
Crossing the Pond in ’24
