Last week, reports emerged from the Daily Mail that Burnley owners ALK Capital were considering a deal to purchase Mexican top division team Club León.
Whether that deal materialises remains to be seen. Regardless, ALK’s exploration of a deal for León is another illustration of the growing trend of interest from American investors into Mexican football teams.
Last year, American private equity giant General Atlantic took a stake in arguably Mexico’s most famous club, Club América. Innovatio Capital, an investment firm headed by Kentucky-based Marc Spiegel, also purchased a club in 2025, taking ownership of Querétaro. Investment has even flowed in beneath Liga MX level, with the Blue Crow Sports Group taking ownership of Cancún FC in 2021.
This raises a fundamental question – why? Why are institutional American investors like General Atlantic and Innovatio Capital taking stakes in Liga MX teams, rather than MLS equivalents?
One answer is simple: relative cost. For American investors coming from the ecosystem of Major League Soccer, Liga MX teams look like a bargain.
Insight Eleven’s internal data shows Major League Soccer teams having an average valuation of just under $700m. Compare this to the reported valuation at which General Atlantic purchased a stake in Club América – $490m – and it begins to become clear why Mexican teams appeal to value-chasing American investors.
For just over half the cost of an average Major League Soccer franchise, an investor can take ownership of one of the biggest brands in Mexican football.
In addition, Mexican teams are attractive because, in some cases, the owners have no choice but to sell. In April 2026, Liga MX owners voted to prohibit owners from owning multiple teams in Liga MX, a practice that previously was commonplace. As such, ownership groups like Grupo Pachuca – owners of Club León and CF Pachuca – have no choice but to divest a team. Such a scenario offers additional leverage to buyers, who are negotiating in the knowledge that the incumbent owner must sell the team soon.
Beyond relative cost however, many believe that Liga MX simply offers more potential than an investment in an MLS team because Americans prefer to watch Liga MX games than domestic alternatives. The 2024 Liga MX final drew 2.02 million viewers in the US, roughly double the 994,000 that watched the 2025 MLS Cup Final. To date, Liga MX sides have done little to monetise the huge fanbases which exist north of the border. For American investors considering an investment, this offers a big opportunity to create value.
Television viewership and commercial development is however only part of the potential which investors see in Mexican football. There has been a long-held belief within the game that Mexico has abundant player development potential that it has so far largely failed to recognise. It is striking that a country of 133 million people, in which football is played almost universally, has only won a single knockout game at a World Cup since 1986.
The performance of El Tri at this summer’s World Cup however, and in particular the emergence of young talent such as 17-year-old Gilberto Mora, have made many feel that Mexican football’s latent potential is beginning to be recognised. Club ownership represents an opportunity to monetise that wave of talent development through transfers to the MLS and Europe.
None of this should obscure the challenges which exist in owning football teams in Mexico. Governance has, and continues to be, a problem, with clubs often struggling to agree on strategies that could confer collective benefits. There has long been an attempt, for example, to agree a centralised TV rights deal. This has failed in part due to the entrenched position of the biggest clubs with the largest TV audiences, who have been reluctant to sacrifice their lucrative TV rights deals in favour of a centralised arrangement which will benefit smaller sides.
Naturally of course, an investment in Mexican football also carries the same risks as investing in Mexico more broadly. Organised crime, corruption and political instability are real risks which have been enough to deter potential American investors from Liga MX entirely.
But with MLS valuations only increasing, it seems likely that American investors looking for exposure to football in North America will continue to explore value opportunities in Mexico. With huge audiences that have to date been under-commercialised, the potential rewards for an investor who successfully navigates the challenges of Mexican football are huge.
Oliver Cantrill
Insight Eleven is a boutique M&A consultancy specialising in football club transactions. You can follow them on LinkedIn here.
