Liga MX Shifts Kickoff Times for Two Matches to Avoid Clashing with Márquez's Debut with El Tri

Liga MX adjusted the clock on two of its matches to give Rafael Márquez the full spotlight. The "Kaiser's" debut in charge of the Mexican national team forced changes to the schedule for Matchday 10 of the Apertura 2026, all to keep two league games from overlapping with Mexico vs. Colombia, set for 7:00 p.m. on Saturday, September 26.

The matches affected were Santos vs. Pachuca and Tigres vs. Puebla, both originally scheduled for the same time as the national team's friendly. To avoid competing for viewers with Márquez's presentation, the league pushed both matches back nearly two hours: Santos vs. Pachuca will now kick off at 9:05 p.m. and Tigres vs. Puebla will be played at 9:10 p.m., that same Saturday.

The adjustment isn't a coincidence or a simple scheduling whim. It comes down to something deeper: this FIFA date window runs two weeks, but Liga MX only pauses its activity for one. That gap is exactly what caused Mexico's match against Colombia to collide with Matchday 10, leaving several clubs without the players called up to national teams while the domestic tournament keeps running.

After this round, the Apertura 2026 will take a full week off. Action will resume on Friday, October 9, when Matchday 11 kicks off. This break is just the first of two the tournament will have for FIFA dates: the second comes between Matchday 16 and 17, during another international friendly window from November 9 to 17.

What's notable is that in a tournament that usually builds its schedule around television and its own competitive logic, this time the priority was crystal clear: nothing could overshadow Márquez's debut with "El Tri." And while the changes might look minor, just two hours' difference, they end up saying a lot about how much anticipation surrounds this debut.