The quarterfinals of the Liga MX liguilla 2022 kick off with the first legs on Wednesday and Thursday followed by the second legs played over the weekend.
The quarterfinal matchups will feature the top eight teams from the Liga MX Apertura regular season standings. The team that scores the most total goals over both legs combined moves on to the semifinals. If teams are tied on aggregate goals, the higher seed automatically advances, and there is no extra time or penalty shootout until the final.
Top seed Club America will take on the lowest remaining seed Puebla in a rematch of the 2022 Clausura quarterfinals won by America. Meanwhile, No. 2 Monterrey will go head-to-head against another heavyweight No. 7 Cruz Azul, who are one of the hottest teams in Mexico.
The other two quarterfinal matchups promise plenty of goals as Toluca take on Santos Laguna and Tigres meet Pachuca.
Here’s the schedule, times, TV channels and live streams for both legs of the quarterfinals:
Quarterfinals (1st leg)
| Date | Match | Time (ET) | TV | Streaming |
| Wed, Oct. 12 | Puebla (8) vs. Club America (1) | 8 p.m. | TUDN | fuboTV |
| Wed, Oct. 12 | Cruz Azul (7) vs. Monterrey (2) | 10 p.m. | Univision, TUDN | fuboTV |
| Thu, Oct. 13 | Toluca (6) vs. Santos Laguna (3) | 8 p.m. | TUDN | fuboTV, ViX+ |
| Thu, Oct. 13 | Tigres (5) vs. Pachuca (4) | 10 p.m. | TUDN | fuboTV |
Quarterfinals (2nd leg)
| Date | Match | Time (ET) | TV Channels | Streaming |
| Sat, Oct. 15 | Monterrey (2) vs. Cruz Azul (7) | 7 p.m. | Fox Deportes | fuboTV |
| Sat, Oct. 15 | Club America (1) vs. Puebla (8) | 9 p.m. | Univision, TUDN | fuboTV, ViX+ |
| Sun, Oct. 16 | Santos Laguna (3) vs. Toluca (6) | 8 p.m. | Fox Deportes | fuboTV |
| Sun, Oct. 16 | Pachuca (4) vs. Tigres (5) | 10 p.m. | TUDN | fuboTV |
Repechaje: Liguilla play-in matches
The liguilla single-elimination play-in round (also known as the Repechaje or Reclasificacion) featured wins by all four home teams.
| Date | Match | Result | |
| Sat., Oct. 8 | Tigres (No. 5) vs. Necaxa (No. 12) | 2-0 | HIGHLIGHTS |
| Sat., Oct. 8 | Cruz Azul (No. 7) vs. Leon (No. 10) | 1-0 | HIGHLIGHTS |
| Sun., Oct. 9 | Toluca (No. 6) vs. FC Juarez (No. 11) | 3-0 | HIGHLIGHTS |
| Sun., Oct. 9 | Puebla (No. 8) vs. Chivas (No. 9) | 1-1 (Puebla 5-4 pens) |
HIGHLIGHTS |
MORE: All-time list of Liga MX champions
Tigres 2, Necaxa 0
Tigres were expected to easily handle a Necaxa team that failed to win any of its last five regular season matches, but they needed two late goals by superstar Andre-Pierre Gignac to overcome an organized Necaxa side which proved a tough nut to crack.
The early red card to Tigres defender Javier Aquino complicated things for the home side, but Necaxa also had a player sent off in the second half (Facundo Batista), and then Gignac took care of the rest with a stunning free-kick goal and a header to liquidate Los Rayos.
Cruz Azul 1, Leon 0
In a match that seemed destined for penalty kicks, a Nacho Rivero goal with 20 minutes remaining proved the game-winner. Leon goalkeeper Rodolfo Cota could not handle a cross which he came out to snag, and that gave Rivero the opening he needed. Cruz Azul continue their hot streak, after winning their last four matches of the regular season.
Leon thought they had a late penalty kick opportunity to equalize when the referee pointed to the spot for a hand ball deep in stoppage time. But the VAR stepped in, the referee had another look, and ultimately reversed the decision in a wild sequence.
Toluca 3-0 Juarez
Juarez were happy just to be in the postseason after sneaking in on the final day, but their season came to an end soon after.
With the fewest goals scored of any liguilla team, the Bravos could not find the back of the net, while Camilo Sanvezzo, Carlos Gonzalez, and Marcel Ruiz were all on target for Toluca.
Puebla 1-1 Chivas (5-4 on penalties)
This was arguably the marquee matchup of the play-in round and it delivered, producing a 1-1 draw that featured a stoppage-time equalizer from Chivas substitute Carlos Cisneros.
The match went to penalties, and the lone shootout miss was from Jesus Angulo of Chivas, who had come into the match in the 88th minute and assisted Cisneros’s equalizer.
How Liga MX Liguilla 2022 works
Twelve teams make the playoffs, with the top four seeds advancing directly to the quarterfinals. The other eight teams play a single-elimination play-in round (the Repechaje in Spanish). If there is a draw after 90 minutes in the Repechaje round, the teams go directly to a penalty shootout.
The four teams that survive the play-in round face the top four seeds in the quarterfinals based on seeding, with the top seed (America) landing the lowest remaining seed from the play-in round (Puebla), and so on. The quarterfinals are played over two legs, as is the remainder of the liguilla, including the final.
The team that scores the most goals across each two-leg series advances. If teams are level on total goals after the second leg, the higher seed automatically advances in the quarters and semis. However, that rule disappears for the final. Extra time and penalties (if necessary) would be used to determine a champion in the final.
- Play-in matches (Repechaje): Oct. 8-9 (single elimination)
- Quarterfinals: Oct. 12-13 (1st leg) & Oct. 15-16 (2nd leg)
- Semifinals: Oct. 19-20 (1st leg) & Oct. 22-23 (2nd leg)
- Final: Oct. 27 (1st leg) & Oct. 30 (2nd leg)
Liga MX TV channels, live streams in the USA
- TV channels: Univision, TUDN, UniMas, Telemundo, Universo, ESPN Deportes, Fox Deportes
- Live streaming: fuboTV, ViX, ViX+, ESPN+, ESPN App, TelemundoDeportes.com, Fox Deportes app
The Liga MX 2022 Apertura season is carried by four major U.S. broadcast outlets: the Univision family of networks (including Univision, TUDN and UniMas), ESPN Deportes, Telemundo/Universo and Fox Deportes.
All these Spanish-language channels can be streamed on fuboTV, which offers a free trial.
Most matches can also be streamed with user authentication on the various alternate platforms offered by the networks: ViX+, TUDN.tv, TelemundoDeportes.com, and the apps for Telemundo Deportes, ESPN, TUDN and Fox Deportes.
Liga MX Apertura 2022 table
The final regular season standings below were based on points collected during the 17 games of the regular season: three points for a win, one for a draw, none for a loss.
If teams were tied on points, the first tiebreakers was goal difference and then goals scored (if necessary). The full list of tiebreakers is outlined in the official rules (Page 9).
Final Apertura regular season standings as of Sunday, Oct. 2, 2022
| Pos. | Team | PTS | GP | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Club America-X | 38 | 17 | 12 | 2 | 3 | 38 | 17 | +21 |
| 2. | Monterrey-X | 35 | 17 | 10 | 5 | 2 | 29 | 13 | +16 |
| 3. | Santos Laguna-X | 33 | 17 | 10 | 3 | 4 | 38 | 21 | +17 |
| 4. | Pachuca-X | 32 | 17 | 9 | 5 | 3 | 28 | 15 | +13 |
| 5. | Tigres UANL-Y | 30 | 17 | 9 | 3 | 5 | 24 | 14 | +10 |
| 6. | Toluca-Y | 27 | 17 | 7 | 6 | 4 | 27 | 23 | +4 |
| 7. | Cruz Azul-Y | 24 | 17 | 7 | 3 | 7 | 26 | 34 | -8 |
| 8. | Puebla-Y | 22 | 17 | 4 | 10 | 3 | 25 | 23 | +2 |
| 9. | Chivas-Y | 22 | 17 | 5 | 7 | 5 | 19 | 17 | +2 |
| 10. | Club Leon-Y | 22 | 17 | 6 | 4 | 7 | 25 | 29 | -4 |
| 11. | FC Juarez-Y | 19 | 17 | 4 | 7 | 6 | 17 | 18 | -1 |
| 12. | Necaxa-Y | 19 | 17 | 5 | 4 | 8 | 19 | 26 | -7 |
| 13. | Atl. San Luis-E | 18 | 17 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 15 | 23 | -8 |
| 14. | Mazatlan-E | 17 | 17 | 3 | 8 | 6 | 17 | 24 | -7 |
| 15. | Club Tijuana-E | 17 | 17 | 4 | 5 | 8 | 18 | 30 | -12 |
| 16. | Pumas UNAM-E | 14 | 17 | 2 | 8 | 7 | 21 | 31 | -10 |
| 17. | Atlas-E | 13 | 17 | 3 | 4 | 10 | 16 | 27 | -11 |
| 18. | Queretaro-E | 9 | 17 | 1 | 6 | 10 | 18 | 35 | -17 |
(PTS=Points. GP=Games Played. W=Wins. D=Draws. L=Losses. GF=Goals for. GA=Goals against. GD=Goal Difference.)
- X = Qualified for quarterfinals
- Y = Qualified for play-in (repechaje)
- E = Eliminated
Liga MX 2022 regular season finale (Matchday 17)
These were the results of the final regular-season matchday, which saw Juarez and Necaxa capture the final two liguilla berths.
Also, Club America clinched the No. 1 seed, while Santos Laguna secured a first-round bye by finishing inside the top four ahead of Tigres.
| Date | Match | |
| Fri., Sept. 30 | Puebla 1, Club America 2 | HIGHLIGHTS |
| Fri., Sept. 30 | FC Juarez 3, Pumas UNAM 1 | HIGHLIGHTS |
| Sat., Oct. 1 | San Luis 0, Tigres UANL 3 | HIGHLIGHTS |
| Sat., Oct. 1 | Monterrey 0, Pachuca 0 | HIGHLIGHTS |
| Sat., Oct. 1 | Atlas 1, Necaxa 0 | HIGHLIGHTS |
| Sat., Oct. 1 | Cruz Azul 2, Chivas 1 | HIGHLIGHTS |
| Sun., Oct. 2 | Toluca 4, Queretaro 1 | HIGHLIGHTS |
| Sun., Oct. 2 | Santos Laguna 3, Mazatlan 0 | HIGHLIGHTS |
| Sun., Oct. 2 | Club Leon 2, Tijuana 2 | HIGHLIGHTS |