2018–19 Ascenso MX season
The 2018–19 Ascenso MX season is a two-part competition: Apertura 2018 and Clausura 2019. Ascenso MX is the second-tier football league of Mexico. Apertura began on 20 July 2018, and Clausura began on 4 January 2019.
Changes from the previous season
Nine teams met the requirements to be promoted to the Liga MX for the 2019–2020 season: Atlético San Luis, Juárez, Oaxaca, Sinaloa, Sonora, Tampico Madero, UdeG, Zacatecas, and Zacatepec. Atlante and Celaya lost their right to be promoted from the previous season.The relegated team of the Clausura 2019 Liga MX season had the option of paying MXN$120 million to remain in Liga MX. Of that amount, MXN$60 million would go to the Ascenso MX team that is not certified to be promoted and MXN$60 million would go to new projects determined by the Liga MX assembly. If the team that had normally relegated to the tier below did then the MXN$120 million remained in Liga MX, the team's right to be the 18th team of Liga MX will be seceded to Liga MX and the MXN$120 million must be paid by the other 17 teams of Liga MX. The vacant position in Liga MX could then be occupied by a certified Ascenso MX team or an external sport project. If the position is not occupied, Liga MX reserves all rights to do as deemed fit with it for the 2019–20 Liga MX season.
Teams in the Liga Premier de México must be certified to be promoted to Ascenso MX. If a promoted team is not certified for Ascenso MX, the relegated Ascenso MX team is required to pay MXN$15 million, of which MXN$5 million are given to the team that is not certified, and MXN$10 million are for development projects of Ascenso MX.
Team squads are limited to 12 players not developed in Mexico. A maximum of nine of those players may be in the match-day squad.
Teams are required to give youth players playing time. For the Apertura 2018 season, teams must accumulate 675 minutes with players born on or after 1997. For the Clausura 2019 season, teams must accumulate 882 minutes with players born in 1998.
The away goals rule is no longer a tiebreaker for the liguilla.
15 clubs will participate in this season:
- Lobos BUAP were relegated from Liga MX, but paid the required MXN$120 million to remain in Liga MX.
- Tapachula won the 2017–18 Promotion Final, but were not certified to be promoted prior to the beginning of the season. They received the payment from Lobos BUAP and remain in Ascenso MX.
- Murciélagos were relegated to the Liga Premier de México.
- Tepatitlán won the Liga Premier de México promotion final, but was not certified to be promoted. The right to promotion was initially seceded to the runner-up, Loros UdeC. Loros UdeC was not certified to compete in the category, therefore, only 15 teams will participate in the Ascenso MX season.
- Tlaxcala lost their spot in Ascenso MX as renovations to the Estadio Tlahuicole were not completed on time.
Stadiums and Locations
Personnel and kits
Managerial changes
Apertura 2018
Apertura 2018 was the 47th edition of Ascenso MX. The league season began on 20 July 2018 and ended on 11 November 2018. Cafetaleros de Tapachula defended their inaugural league title.Regular season
Standings
Positions by round
Results
Regular Season statistics
Scoring
- First goal of the season:
Top goalscorers
Players sorted first by goals scored, then by last name.| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
| 1 |  Nicolás Ibáñez | Atlético San Luis | 8 |
| 1 |  Roberto Nurse | Zacatecas | 8 |
| 2 |  Vinicio Angulo | Sinaloa | 7 |
| 2 |  Lizandro Echeverría | Atlante | 7 |
| 2 |  Fernando Fernández | Atlante | 7 |
| 2 | Guillermo Martínez | Zacatecas | 7 |
| 2 | Luciano Nequecaur | Oaxaca | 7 |
| 2 | Miguel Ángel Vallejo | Sonora | 7 |
| 9 |  Leandro Carrijó | Juárez | 6 |
| 9 | Gabriel Hachen | Juárez | 6 |
Source:
Top assists
Players sorted first by assists, then by last name.| Rank | Player | Club | Assists |
| 1 | Francisco Rivera | Zacatecas | 5 |
| 2 | Diego Diellos | Tapachula | 4 |
| 2 | Mauro Fernández | Juárez | 4 |
| 2 | Gabriel Hachen | Juárez | 4 |
| 2 | Julio Nava | Sinaloa | 4 |
| 2 | José Ramírez | Zacatecas | 4 |
| 2 | David Salazar | Atlante | 4 |
| 8 | Daniel Amador | U. de G. | 3 |
| 8 | Lizandro Echeverría | Atlante | 3 |
| 8 |  Sergio Vergara | Zacatecas | 3 |
Source:
Hat-tricks
– Home ; – AwayAttendance
Per team
Highest and lowest
Source:Liguilla (Playoffs)
The eight best teams play two games against each other on a home-and-away basis. The higher seeded teams play on their home field during the second leg. The winner of each match up is determined by aggregate score. In the quarterfinals and semifinals, if the two teams are tied on aggregate the higher seeded team advances. In the final, if the two teams are tied after both legs, the match goes to extra time and, if necessary, a penalty shoot-out.Quarter-finals
The first legs were played on 14 and 15 November, and the second legs were played on 17 and 18 November 2018.All times are except for matches in Cancún, Ciudad Juárez, Culiacán, and Hermosillo.
First leg
Second leg
Semi-finals
The first legs were played on 21 and 22 November, and the second legs were played on 24 and 25 November 2018.First leg
Second leg
Final
The first leg was played on 29 November, and the second leg was played on 2 December 2018.First leg
Second leg
Clausura 2019
The Clausura 2019 season is the 48th season of Ascenso MX. The season began on 4 January 2019. The defending champions are Atlético San Luis, having won their first title.Regular season
Standings
Positions by round
Results
Teams play every other team once, with one team resting each round, completing a total of 15 rounds.Regular Season statistics
Top goalscorers
Players sorted first by goals scored, then by last name.| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
| 1 | Nicolás Ibáñez | Atlético San Luis | 11 |
| 2 | Fabián Bordagaray | Sinaloa | 7 |
| 2 | Giovani Hernández | Zacatepec | 7 |
| 4 | Fernando Fabián Fernández | Atlante | 6 |
| 4 |  Serge Patrick Njoh | Atlante | 6 |
| 4 |  Martín Alaniz | Tapachula | 6 |
| 4 | Javier Orozco | Tampico Madero | 6 |
| 8 | Guillermo Martínez | Zacatecas | 5 |
| 8 | Roberto Nurse | Zacatecas | 5 |
| 8 | Alonso Escoboza | Sinaloa | 5 |
| 8 | Jorlian Sánchez | UdeG | 5 |
Source:
Top assists
Players sorted first by assists, then by last name.| Rank | Player | Club | Assists |
| 1 | Kevin Lara | Atlético San Luis | 5 |
| 2 | Giovani Hernández | Zacatepec | 4 |
| 2 |  Ian González | Atlético San Luis | 4 |
| 2 | Fernando Madrigal | Atlético San Luis | 4 |
Source:
Hat-tricks and more
– Home ; – AwayAttendance
Per team
Highest and lowest
Source:Liguilla (Playoffs)
The four best teams of each group play two games against each other on a home-and-away basis. The higher seeded teams play on their home field during the second leg. The winner of each match up is determined by aggregate score. In the quarterfinals and semifinals, if the two teams are tied on aggregate the higher seeded team advances. In the final, if the two teams are tied after both legs, the match goes to extra time and, if necessary, a penalty shoot-out.Quarter-finals
The first legs were played on 17 and 18 April, and the second legs were played on 20 and 21 April 2019.All times are except for matches in Culiacán and Hermosillo.
First leg
Second leg
Semi-finals
The first legs were played on 24 April, and the second legs were played on 27 April 2019.First leg
Second leg
Final
The first leg was played on 2 May, and the second leg was played on 5 May 2019.First leg
Second leg
Aggregate table
The Aggregate table is the general ranking for the 2018–19 season. This table is a sum of the Apertura and Clausura tournament standings. The aggregate table is used to determine seeding for the "Promotion" Final and for 2019–20 Copa MX qualification.Relegation table
The relegated team will be the one with the lowest ratio of points to matches played in the following tournaments: Apertura 2016, Clausura 2017, Apertura 2017, Clausura 2018, Apertura 2018, and Clausura 2019. On April 5, 2019, Tampico Madero was relegated to Serie A.Last update: 14 April 2019
Rules for relegation: 1) Relegation coefficient; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored; 4) Head-to-head results between tied teams; 5) Number of goals scored away; 6) Fair Play points
R = Relegated
Source: