Former Mexico president Felipe Calderon has joined protests against reported plans to move Liga MX club Monarcas Morelia to Mazatlan ahead of the 2020 Apertura.
Reports that Morelia's ownership Grupo Salinas has agreed to a sale and to transfer the club to the Pacific coast city in Sinaloa have been followed by coach Pablo Guede and sporting director Hector Lara leaving the club over recent days, with Morelia native Calderon outraged by the prospect.
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"It is very bad that a team with so much tradition and with a loyal and committed fanbase like Morelia disappears just like that," wrote Calderon on Twitter, responding to ESPN's Jose Ramon Fernandez. "I protest!"
Morelia fans took to the streets to protest the potential move during quarantine on Sunday, with videos emerging of fans crying at the prospect of losing their team.
Liga MX president Enrique Bonilla was adamant that as of Monday there had been no official request to move the club, but did praise the new stadium that has been built in Mazatlan.
"The reality is that we haven't received an official notification or a request to substitute the certification or a change of name of location [for any teams]," Bonilla told TUDN. "I can talk about the [new] stadium in Mazatlan, I had the chance to visit and speak to the governor and it is a stadium that has the necessary facilities so fans can see not only football, but any kind of show they bring with security that is first world.
"It's a great stadium, very beautiful," added Bonilla. "If one day a Liga MX team or second division team comes in [to Mazatlan], believe me that they will have a great location in a great city with a great stadium."
Liga MX canceled its 2020 Clausura season last week, having suspended it back on March 15 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The league has since put promotion and relegation between the top two divisions on hold for six years.