The new Development League, which will replace the Ascenso MX, has a rule that only allows players aged 23 or younger. This means that automatically 236 players who currently play in the second division will be unemployed.
The Ascenso MX has an average age of 26.1 years and only 121 out of the 357 players in that category meet the requirement of 23 years or younger. The most affected teams would be the Correcaminos of UAT, as two out of their 26 players meet the new Development League rule, and the Alebrijes de Oaxaca, who would be forced to release 25 professionals. The management of both teams promised that all contracts would be honored, according to ESPN Digital.
"In the First Division, players can go for up to a year without getting paid or even retire due to the wealth they have accumulated, but in the Ascenso MX it's very different because here many of the young players barely have enough to cover their monthly expenses or their family's expenses," said Roberto Hernández, coach of Correcaminos.
There are 13 players who could join the unemployment ranks next year if they don't find a team in the First Division since they will be over the age limit of 23. So the number of unemployed players would reach almost 250.
"They say it's 70 percent of players who will be unemployed, but if you analyze it properly, it could be as high as 78 percent. Now, as the president says, I have other figures," added the coach.
Out of the 88 foreigners who play in the Ascenso MX, only 16 are below the age of 23, which means that 72 players would have to return to their countries. The team with the most players who meet the requirement is the Cimarrones of Sonora, who could keep 16 players from their current squad and let go of 15 players.
The disappearance of the Ascenso MX would leave football players without resources to survive.