MLS, Liga MX Join Forces for Campeones Cup, Future All-Star Game

MLS and Liga MX announced a new partnership that will pit the leagues' top teams and players against one another for the years to come.

MLS and Liga MX announced a new partnership Tuesday that will pit the leagues' top teams and players against one another for the years to come.

On a day when the two North American leagues will have teams go head-to-head for places in the CONCACAF Champions League semifinals, they joined forces to create a new annual competition, the Campeones Cup. The match will feature the reigning MLS Cup champion and a reigning Liga MX champion, with the Mexican entrant being decided in a playoff between the Apertura and Clausura winners. The inaugural edition will be hosted by Toronto FC, who will face either Tigres UANL or the upcoming Clausura playoff winner on September 19 at BMO Field.

The leagues also announced a future commitment between the two for an All-Star Game. MLS has played a European opponent the last 13 years in its summer showcase and is expected to do so again in Atlanta this summer, but that will change with the eventual shift to an MLS All-Stars vs. Liga MX All-Stars showdown. No timing was revealed for that change. The trickle down effect will reach the Homegrown Game as well, with Liga MX U-20 teams featuring as the opponent to take on MLS's young homegrown talent.

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This is not the first time the two bordering leagues have been in competition specifically with one another. The short-lived SuperLiga existed from 2007-2010 before being discontinued.

The CONCACAF Champions League, meanwhile, continues Tuesday night with the second leg of the quarterfinals, with the New York Red Bulls holding a 2-0 lead over Club Tijuana and Toronto FC nursing a 2-1 edge over Tigres. Another Liga MX-MLS clash takes place Wednesday, when the Seattle Sounders will look to build on their 1-0 home win over Chivas in Guadalajara.