The Liga MX Apertura 2024 regular season is over and the stage is set for the start of La Liguilla on the other side of the international break.

The big four teams of Mexican football, Cruz Azul, Pumas, Club América and Chivas, all joined in the dance, as did northeastern powers Monterrey and Tigres. Toluca finished second and will try to end a 14-year championship draft. The two surprises of the season, Atlético San Luis and Tijuana, promise to be difficult in the elimination matches.

The play-in matches will determine the last two spots available in the quarterfinals. Tijuana, América, Chivas and Atlas will face off in an NBA-style elimination round to determine the rivals who will face top seeds Cruz Azul and Toluca.

La Liguilla promises to deliver the best football of the Liga MX season and here are the 10 teams that will battle it out for the Apertura 2024 title, ranked.

Los Rojinegros enters the playoffs as clear underdogs. Beñat San Jose’s team managed to secure the last play-in spot; however, they will need to win two away matches to reach the quarter-finals.

Atlas was the definition of mediocre during the regular season. He finished with a record of 5W-7D-5L, without ever being able to fully establish himself in the upper echelon of the league. Most of their success will depend on Colombian goalkeeper Camilo Vargas, one of the few remaining elements of the Atlas teams who won back-to-back Liga MX titles two years ago.

In any case, the Clásico Tapatio against Chivas with elimination on the line promises to be a very exciting match.

Juan Carlos Osorio did a brilliant job getting Tijuana back to the playoffs for the first time in over a decade and a half. This season’s turnaround was a welcome surprise for a team that had made a habit of finishing bottom of the league in recent years.

The lack of major individual talent in Tijuana will be a problem, however. This is a team full of young players without much, if any, playoff experience. Even if he makes it past the play-in stage, a deep playoff run seems far too optimistic. The Border City team has only one win against the top 10 teams in the league, making the prospect of a title run very unlikely.

The departure of Fernando Gago The mid-season was a blow for a team that was playing some of the best football in Mexico, despite the results, under the Argentine’s leadership. Regardless, Chivas did well to at least qualify for the playoffs despite all the turmoil.

Facing a Clásico Tapatio to avoid elimination and the prospect of playing El Clásico Nacional against América with a quarter-final place on the line could be too much for Arturo Ortega’s side. The interim coach managed to keep his team afloat during the final weeks of the season; However, a title charge seems very unlikely given current circumstances.

San Luis almost doubled their points total from last season and played some very good football, especially at home where they won every game except for a draw. It is a solid and compact team that knows how to hide its weaknesses and magnify its strengths.

The lack of individual quality and having to play the second leg of their playoff games on the road makes it difficult to envision a real title run. He will face Tigres in the quarterfinals in what promises to be a very tough match for the winningest team in Liga MX over the last decade. San Luis will be a tough task for any opponent on this list.

Fourth on the table but only sixth on this list. Gustavo Lema has done a good job taking over from Antonio Mohammed as the Pumas have improved from last season. This is a serious, competitive, high-intensity team that covers the entire length and breadth of the field. They are a disciplined team who make few mistakes and also capitalize on their scoring opportunities.

The Pumas won’t be easy to beat in 180 minutes and it certainly wouldn’t be a surprise if they beat Monterrey in the quarter-finals. A first league title in 13 years is not out of the question for Mexico’s fourth most popular team.

A team that doesn’t even have a quarterfinal berth assured being so high might surprise, but America is no ordinary team, they are the back-to-back defending champions of Liga MX.

Andre Jardine hasn’t lost a playoff game since becoming manager of the club over a year ago and although results have been up and down during the regular season, the team has more enough quality to beat any team on this list. He will have two chances to advance to the quarterfinals, and if he does, Las Águilas will immediately become a nightmare for any team he faces.

Martín Demichelis’ team has arguably the best team in all of Mexico and he has seemingly found his best team at the perfect time, with former Real Betis player Sergio Canales leading the way.

Rayados has been underperforming in recent tournaments, failing to reach the finals and getting bounced by teams of lower individual quality. It remains to be seen if this is the season where the team goes all out in the playoffs, if so then a sixth Liga MX trophy becomes a very real possibility.

No team has had more playoff success than the Tigers over the past decade. Father’s time is approaching for club legends like André-Pierre Gignac, Nahuel Guzmán and Rodolfo Pizarro. So there is a growing desire for this core of players who made the Tigers a domestic giant to lift one more trophy before all is said and done.

Still one of the strongest teams with a prolific squad filled with abundant talent in all areas, Veljko Paunović’s men are well placed to win the team’s sixth Liga MX title in the Gignac era.

Renato Paiva’s side were terrific during the regular season, playing electrifying, attacking football, led by Apertura 2024 golden boot winner Paulinho.

Much more could be said about Toluca’s brilliant season without the team that occupies the top spot on this list. Regardless, Los Diablos Rojos enters the playoffs as the No. 2 seed after dismantling América 4-0 to end their strong regular season. It wouldn’t shock anyone if the season ended with Toluca lifting the trophy.

The big favorite to win the trophy at the end of the season is the team that has just established a new regular season points record in Liga MX: Cruz Azul.

Martín Anselmi’s side have lost just once at the Apertura 2024 after losing in the final to America a season ago. No team in Mexico understands their system or has played better over the past five months than Cruz Azul – by far.

La Máquina dominated the rest of the league during the regular season, playing like one of the best Mexican soccer teams of all time. If he manages to maintain his recent form in the playoffs, it is difficult to envisage any other result than a 10th Liga MX title for the blue team in Mexico.

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