Pumas, Cruz Azul, Chivas and América want to end their title droughts
The most recent was La Máquina a year and a half ago; Los Felinos haven’t won for 11 years.
Talking of title droughts when only 5 years have passed since one of Cruz Azul, América or Chivas have lifted the trophy may seem a bit excessive or even radical but, given the heritage of the so-called “Big Four” of Mexican football, this constitutes as a drought in today’s terms.
And if you add into that the fact that is has been over a decade since Pumas have won the league, then there is cause for eyebrows to be raised.
Chivas, Cruz Azul and Pumas themselves have all had to battle their own demons over the past years in order to get back to the level they were at before; for a long time it felt like they were able to pick up titles by the year, with little difficulty.
Take Cruz Azul, for example. In the last 25 years they have won one league title - the Clausura 2021 - and that is already a year and a half old. For their fans, just a solitary win in such a long period of time is not something that fits with their perception of the club being at the top of Mexican football.
If Cruz Azul’s problems seem serious, then hearts must be racing as well in Chivas, a club that has only won 2 titles in 25 years, the Apertura in 2006 and the Clausura 2017 under Matías Almeyda.
At Chivas they are obviously demanding answers and of course a way of working as a club that allows them to continue having the best talent in the country to challenge for the top spot. It is a landscape that has changed a lot given the short nature of the tournament, with teams such as Pachuca, Toluca, Santos, Tigres and Monterrey all growing due to the format, usurping the Big Four.
América seem to have lost their way over the last years, and not since the Apertura 2018 have they won the league. But their statistics are a lot more positive than the other Big Four over the past 25 years, having won 4 championships, three more than Cruz Azul and two more than Chivas.
Pumas sit in another world altogether, and have not won for 11 years. Over the past 25 years they have 4 titles, the same as América, but the reality is that the top of the tree is a far way away from where Pumas can hope to compete right now.
The upcoming Clausura 2023 will be a challenge for a lot of teams and a huge amount of pressure will be placed on the Big Four, as always, from the fans that long for success once again.