The format for the 2008–09 season changed from 2 groups of 12 to 3 groups of 9 teams. This gave the opportunity and the number increased from 24 to 27, many teams served as reserve teams from teams in D1.
Changes for the 2008–09 season Coatzacoalcos moved to Orizaba and was rebranded Orizaba after Apertura 2008 Veracruz were demoted from Primera División Indios were promoted to Mexican Primera Division Irapuato won promotion to Primera División A when Pachuca Jr. did not meet the qualifications for promotion.
Added teams Atlante Chetumal Mérida FC Chihuahua Club Tapatio From Morelia B
Stadia and locations ClubStadiumCapacityCityAcadémicosJaliscoAlfredo Pistache Torres63,0003,000GuadalajaraAtlético MexiquenseNemesio Díez25,000TolucaTR CoatzacoalcosRafael Hérnandez Ochoa4,800CoatzacoalcosCorrecaminosMarte R. Gómez19,000Ciudad VictoriaCruz Azul Hidalgo10 de Diciembre17,000Ciudad Cooperativa Cruz AzulDorados de SinaloaBanorte19,000CuliacánDurangoFrancisco Zarco15,000Durango CityIndios de ChihuahuaOlímpico Universitario José Reyes Baeza22,000Chihuahua CityIrapuatoSergio León Chávez26,000IrapuatoJaguares 'A'Víctor Manuel Reyna17,000Tuxtla Gutiérrez, ChiapasLeónLeón35,000LeónLobos BUAPCuauhtémoc42,600Puebla CityMéridaCarlos Iturralde18,000MéridaPotros ChetumalJosé López Portillo10,000ChetumalPumas MorelosCentenario14,800CuernavacaQuerétaroCorregidora33,000Querétaro CityRayados 'A'El Barrial1,000SantiagoReal ColimaColima12,000Colima CitySalamancaOlímpico Sección 2410,000SalamancaSantos Laguna 'A'Corona19,000TorreónSocio ÁguilaAzteca114,600Mexico CityTampico MaderoTamaulipas20,000Tampico and Ciudad MaderoTapatíoJalisco63,000GuadalajaraTecos 'A'Tres de Marzo25,000ZapopanTigres "B"Universitario42,000San Nicolás de los GarzaTijuanaCaliente22,000TijuanaTR VeracruzLuis "Pirata" Fuente30,000Boca del Río
Apertura 2008
The Primera División A Apertura 2008 is a Mexican football tournament, one of two short tournaments held each year. It began on July 18, 2008, and ran until December 7, 2008. The reigning champions, León, were eliminated in the quarterfinals by Irapuato on a 2–1 two-leg aggregate, and thus could not successfully defend their Clausura 2008 title. Querétaro won the tournament, defeating Irapuato on a 2–0 two-leg aggregate, and will earn a spot into the promotional playoff held after the end of the Clausura 2009 season, where the winners of the two tournaments meet in an effort to gain promotion to the Primera División.
After winning the 2008 promotional playoff against León, the Indios were promoted to the Primera División. Veracruz were relegated to the Primera División A due to finishing at the bottom of the Primera División relegation table. Pachuca Juniors won the right to be promoted to the Primera División A after winning the Segunda División promotional playoff but lacked the certificate of promotion given to teams by the Federación Mexicana de Fútbol Asociación. Instead, Irapuato were promoted to the Primera División A, and two new reserve teams were created for the Indios of Ciudad Juárez (Chihuahua) and Atlante (Chetumal).
Tournament format
A total of 27 teams are divided into three groups of nine teams each. Each team plays the other eight teams in its group twice, once at home and once away, for a total of 16 games. At the end of the regular season the top two teams in each group, as well as the next two highest placed teams, qualify to the Liguilla. The teams are seeded based on their position in the general table and are arranged before each round so that the highest seeded team remaining always plays the lowest seed remaining. The teams play a home and home series and whichever team has the better aggregate score advances. If the two teams are tied after both legs in the quarterfinals and semifinals the higher seed advances automatically. In the finals, if the two teams are tied after both legs two 15 minute halves of extra time are added. If the teams are still tied after extra time the champion is determined through a penalty shootout.
Promotion
One team is promoted to the Primera División each year (two short tournaments). After the Clausura 2009 tournament, the champions of the Apertura 2008 and Clausura 2009 tournaments will play a home and home series to determine which team will be promoted. If the same team wins both tournaments it will be promoted automatically. In order for a team to be promoted it has to obtain a certification from the Federación Mexicana de Fútbol Asociación. If the winner of the promotional final is not certified for promotion a home and home series is played between the highest placed certified team and the club being relegated to the Primera División A to determine which will be in the Primera División.
Currently certified teams
Atlético Mexiquense Lobos BUAP Cruz Azul Hidalgo Durango Irapuato Mérida León Querétaro Santos Laguna A Dorados de Sinaloa Tijuana Correcaminos Veracruz
Relegation
One team is relegated to the Segunda División each year (two short tournaments). The team that has the worst points to games played ratio over the previous three years (Apertura 2006, Clausura 2007, Apertura 2007, Clausura 2008, Apertura 2008, Clausura 2009) is relegated to the Segunda División.
Group league tables
Group 1
Group 2
Group 3
General league table
Liguilla
Quarter-finals
First leg
Second leg
Semi-finals
First leg
Second leg
Final
First leg
Second leg
Results
Group 1
Group 2
Group 3
Top scorers
ScorerGoalsTeam Mauro Gerk 14 Querétaro Raúl Enríquez Tijuana Bosco Frontan 10 Tampico Madero José Gutiérrez 9 Chihuahua Javier Orozco 8 Cruz Azul Hidalgo Nicolás Olivera Veracruz Dany González Monterrey A Diego Olsina 7 Mérida Juan Úbeda Lobos BUAP Marco Reyna 6 Durango José Ojeda Tampico Madero Luis Orozco Mérida Sebastián González León Sergio Pérez 5 Irapuato Carlos Vela Correcaminos
Relegation table
Pos. Team Pts 1 Tijuana 32 16 2.0000 2 León 166 84 1.9762 3 Irapuato 30 16 1.8750 4 Veracruz 28 16 1.7500 5 Cruz Azul Hidalgo 144 84 1.7143 6 Dorados de Sinaloa 144 84 1.7143 7 Querétaro 140 84 1.6667 8 Correcaminos 131 84 1.5595 9 Pumas Morelos 126 84 1.5000 10 Coatzacoalcos 126 84 1.5000 11 Lobos BUAP 116 84 1.3810 12 Salamanca 114 84 1.3571 13 Mérida 67 50 1.3400 14 Chihuahua 21 16 1.3125 15 Tigres B 110 84 1.3095 16 Durango 109 84 1.2976 17 Real Colima 106 84 1.2619 18 Tampico Madero 103 84 1.2262 19 Tapatío 102 84 1.2143 20 Atlético Mexiquense 98 84 1.1667 21 Monterrey A 96 84 1.1429 22 Socio Águila 93 84 1.1071 23 Académicos 91 84 1.0833 24 Tecos A 90 84 1.0714 25 Santos Laguna A 81 84 0.9643 26 Tapachula 36 50 0.7200 27 Chetumal 11 16 0.6875
Clausura 2009
The Primera División A Clausura 2009 is a Mexican football tournament, the second of two short tournaments held during the 2008–2009 Mexican football season. It began on January 10, 2009, and will run until May 23 or May 24, 2009. The winner of the tournament will earn a place in the promotional playoff against Querétaro, the winners of the Apertura 2008 tournament, to determine which team will be promoted to the Primera División.
Tournament format
A total of 27 teams are divided into three groups of nine teams each. Each team plays the other eight teams in its group twice, once at home and once away, for a total of 16 games. At the end of the regular season the top two teams in each group, as well as the next two highest placed teams, qualify to the Liguilla (playoffs). The teams are seeded based on their position in the general table and are arranged before each round so that the highest seeded team remaining always plays the lowest seed remaining. The teams play a home and away series and whichever team has the better aggregate score advances. If the two teams are tied after both legs in the quarterfinals and semifinals the higher seed advances automatically. In the finals, if the two teams are tied after both legs two 15 minute halves of extra time are added. If the teams are still tied after extra time the champion is determined through a penalty shootout.
Promotion
One team is promoted to the Primera División each year (two short tournaments). After the Clausura 2009 tournament, the champions of the Apertura 2008 and Clausura 2009 tournaments will play a home and home series to determine which team will be promoted. If the same team wins both tournaments it will be promoted automatically. In order for a team to be promoted it has to obtain a certification from the Federación Mexicana de Fútbol Asociación. If the winner of the promotional final is not certified for promotion a home and away series is played between the highest placed certified team and the club being relegated to the Primera División A to determine which will be in the Primera División.
Currently certified teams
Atlético Mexiquense Lobos BUAP Cruz Azul Hidalgo Durango Irapuato Mérida León Querétaro Santos Laguna A Dorados de Sinaloa Tijuana Correcaminos Veracruz
Relegation
One team is relegated to the Segunda División each year (two short tournaments). The team that has the worst points to games played ratio over the previous three years (Apertura 2006, Clausura 2007, Apertura 2007, Clausura 2008, Apertura 2008, Clausura 2009) is relegated to the Segunda División.
Group league tables
Group 1
Group 2
Group 3
General league table
Liguilla
Quarter-finals
First leg
Second leg
Semi-finals
First leg
Second leg
Final
First leg
Second leg
Campeón de Ascenso 2009
First leg
Second leg
Results
Group 1
Group 2
Group 3
Top scorers
ScorerGoalsTeam Mauro Gerk 11 Querétaro Raúl Enríquez 9 Tijuana Felipe Flores Salamanca Francisco Bravo 8 Veracruz Luis Nieves León Jesús Morales Chetumal Luis Orozco Mérida Óscar Rojas Pumas Morelos Fernando González Cruz Azul Hidalgo Ismael Valadez 7 Chetumal José Gutiérrez 6 Irapuato Juan Hernández Lobos BUAP Nicolás Olivera Veracruz Osvaldo Moreno Real Colima
Relegation table
Pos. Team Pts 1 Tijuana 65 32 2.0313 2 León 189 100 1.8900 3 Veracruz 58 32 1.8125 4 Dorados de Sinaloa 175 100 1.7500 5 Cruz Azul Hidalgo 171 100 1.7100 6 Querétaro 160 100 1.6000 7 Irapuato 50 32 1.5625 8 Correcaminos 151 100 1.5100 9 Pumas Morelos 150 100 1.5000 10 Mérida 97 66 1.4697 11 Orizaba 146 100 1.4600 12 Lobos BUAP 141 100 1.4100 13 Salamanca 140 100 1.4000 14 Durango 134 100 1.3400 15 Chihuahua 41 32 1.2813 16 Tigres B 128 100 1.2800 17 Real Colima 121 100 1.2100 18 Socio Águila 120 100 1.2000 19 Tampico Madero 118 100 1.1800 20 Monterrey 116 100 1.1600 21 Atlético Mexiquense 114 100 1.1400 22 Tapatío 114 100 1.1400 23 Académicos 102 100 1.0200 24 Chetumal 32 32 1.0000 25 Tecos 99 100 0.9900 26 Santos Laguna A 99 100 0.9900 27 Tapachula 52 66 0.7879
External links Federación Mexicana de Fútbol Asociación, A. C.
es:Primera División 'A' de México