Note about Mexican Football
In the last two years, the hegemony of Mexican football has been completely dominated by Tigres. The numbers are clear, and mathematics don't deceive anyone. Copa Libertadores final and three Liga MX finals, of which they won two. Since 2015, with the arrival of André Pierre Gignac, Tigres has shown their financial power, to the point that every semester they continue to sign new players, and engineer Rodriguez is resolute. "We are in the business of winning championships," and every semester they prove that they are at least making the effort.
The financial power shown by the two teams from Nuevo León, is not possessed by Guadalajara or América. While Tigres have top-level players like Nahuel Guzmán, Rafael Carioca, Lucas Zelarayán, Enner Valencia, Gignac, Edu Vargas, and Ismael Sosa, on top of that, the Tuca is still thinking of reinforcing their team with elements that strengthen their base.
In light of this situation, the CEO of Grupo Chivas Omnilife, José Luis Higuera, gave an interview with Jorge Ramos and his Banda on ESPN Radio for the United States, and among other things, he mentioned that it is not so easy to buy players in Mexico, and that in a few years, Chivas will be able to compete economically with Tigres and Rayados.
"It's not so easy to buy players in Mexico anymore; it's not just a matter of money," Higuera started his presentation.
The leader of the Sacred Herd added in his conversation with the journalist that Grupo Omnilife suffered a major fraud involving many millions, which limited them in many ways, not only in sports with Chivas but they are on the path to be 100% independent and that each company can be profitable, both in the branch of food supplements, and in sports with Chivas.
"I believe that both América and Chivas will be equal or better in a short time. They have a very solid model and a financial structure and balance that has been in place for some time. América belongs to a company like Televisa, and in this case, Chivas belongs to Omnilife. You know that we were victims of a very serious fraud in Jorge Vergara's company. We are arranging things to have that autonomy and discipline, and we are very close, at least with Chivas. Many people talk about the sponsorships we are closing. Those will begin in the next season, but they will start in June. We are preparing, or at least we are being responsible in it. I propose to Jorge that we have independence, that Omnilife remains Omnilife, and Chivas remains Chivas. It's a matter of time for us to be as strong or even stronger in terms of budget and managing the team as Jorge indicates."
Higuera also pointed out that in addition to investing in the first team, they give priority to the basic forces in Verde Valle, which is a rule in Chivas to bet on Mexican talent, and that is one of the differences with the teams from the north.
"I understand that Monterrey and Tigres, I'm not an expert, and without disrespecting, do not invest in the basic forces. We are building a high-performance center. I am confident that América and Chivas will soon have a different profile of management, and both clubs are working to have that independence and have that cleanliness in the budgets."
Higuera added that the commitment is greater, that they know that fans always want the best players and always want to win championships, but the fraud they suffered has limited them since a lot of money was taken from them.
"The truth is that it's quite an issue to be sitting here and representing the biggest team in Mexico because of the commitment we have, the conviction with Mexicans, and the commitment to our institution. People don't have to understand it, but the fraud that was committed against Omnilife is public knowledge, and it's complicated when you have a fraud of that magnitude to turn things around and have healthy finances. We are practically ready in that matter. We have to compete. I think with our model, and without sounding arrogant, we can be in finals, fighting in semifinals. Maybe it gets complicated in the league, but we are there in the Cup. In recent years, the team has been competitive."
Chivas invested, but closed the tap
The Sacred Herd has made three multi-million dollar investments. First, they paid 17 million for Alan Pulido, part of that money went to Tigres, another part to Olympiacos from Greece, and the rest is for his salary. Rodolfo Pizarro also arrived at a high cost, the former Pachuca player was the profile that Almeyda was looking for, which is why they paid around 10 million. However, to mitigate the impact, the deal included the transfer of Víctor 'El Pocho' Guzmán, the goal-scoring midfielder from the Tuzos.
The case of Orbelín Pineda was also an investment of more than four million dollars, as well as the six-million-dollar payment for Gallo Vázquez, who is now a Santos Laguna player. In these four players, they spent about 30 million dollars; during the same time, the team from San Nicolás de los Garza has spent over 50 million on transfers and player salaries.
Comparisons of transfers since 2015
Tigres Transfers since Apertura 2015
Jürgen Damm, Jairo González, Ikechukwu Uche, André-Pierre Gignac, Javier Aquino
Clausura 2016
Lucas Zelarayán, Francisco Meza, Carlos Ibargüen, Héctor Mancilla, Fernando Fernández, Andy Delort
Apertura 2016
Luis Rodríguez, Luis Quiñones, Alberto Acosta, Miguel Herrera Equihua, Julián Quiñones, Ismael Sosa, Eduardo Vargas
Clausura 2017
Enner Valencia, Rafael Carioca
Chivas Transfers since Apertura 2015
Oswaldo Alanís, Rodolfo Cota, Edwin Hernández, Michel Vázquez
Clausura 2016
Orbelín Pineda, Giovani Hernández Neri, Carlos Peña, Raúl Suárez
Apertura 2016
Marco Bueno, Juan José Vázquez, Daniel González Vega, Néstor Calderón, Alejandro Zendejas, Alan Pulido
Clausura 2017
Rodolfo Pizarro, Guillermo Martínez
Apertura 2017
No signings
Clausura 2018
Walter Gael Sandoval, Ronaldo Cisneros