Mexico's Apertura tournament, decided each December by the Liguilla knockout play-offs.

Liga MX is Mexico's top professional football division, with roots tracing to 1943 and its current Liga MX branding since 2012. Rather than a single European-style season, the Mexican football year is split into two independent short tournaments: Apertura, running roughly from July to December, and Clausura, from January to May. Each tournament crowns its own champion, decided not by final league position but by the Liguilla, a knockout play-off bracket contested by the top-placed teams from the regular phase, culminating in a two-legged final. This Apertura tournament is the opening half of the Liga MX season. The league features 18 clubs, including some of the most-followed teams in the Americas, led by record champions Club América on 16 titles, alongside historic rivals Chivas Guadalajara, Cruz Azul and Pumas UNAM. Recent Aperturas and Clausuras have been fiercely contested, with Toluca among the teams to have won back-to-back titles. There is no relegation in the modern Liga MX format. Clubs also compete for continental honours in the Concacaf Champions Cup and face MLS opposition in the Leagues Cup. For fans following live scores, the Apertura offers a compact, high-intensity run of regular-season fixtures followed by a dramatic, high-stakes Liguilla play-off to crown the champion each December.