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 News Around the Republic of Mexico | December 2007 
Atlante Brings Soccer Title to Cancun
 Luis Bueno - Press-Enterprise
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| | In its first season playing in Cancun, Atlante brings the first soccer hardware to the resort city by winning the Mexican league title. (AP) |
In a country featuring numerous magnificent resort cities, Cancun is widely considered a must-visit Mexican destination.
It may be one of the most visited cities in all of Mexico, but Cancun's contribution to the country's most popular sport had been nonexistent.
Until now.
Cancun not only sits atop the list of top Mexican resorts, but the city now also boasts the reigning Mexican league champion. Atlante beat Pumas, 2-1, in the Mexican league final on Sunday and brought to Cancun the city's first soccer hardware of any kind.
Atlante followed the lead of Major League Soccer's Houston Dynamo. Atlante relocated from Mexico City, where the club was all but an afterthought, to Cancun before the start of the Apertura 2007 season. Houston relocated from San Jose before the start of the 2006 MLS season, and both clubs endeared their team to the locals by bringing home the domestic championship.
Situated on one of the easternmost points in Mexico, Cancun is one of the country's most popular cities. Thousands of hotels host millions of tourists every year as the resort city draws visitors from across the globe with its crystal-clear waters and bustling nightlife.
The locals, though, are not generally among the soccer-mad Mexicans. Though soccer is king in Mexico, areas of the country prefer other sports. Baseball, for instance, is the preferred sport in many parts of northern Mexico.
Cancun residents historically have favored baseball and basketball over soccer. Before Atlante's arrival, Cancun's sporting history mainly consisted of the local baseball team, the Tigres de Quintana Roo. The club has won three Mexican League baseball championships this decade, including consecutive titles in 2000 and 2001.
But Atlante quickly endeared itself to the resort city. The club's previous home was the soccer hotbed Mexico City. Atlante, though, was the other, other, other team. Mexico City is home to Club America, Cruz Azul and Pumas UNAM, three of the most popular clubs in Mexico, and for decades was home to Necaxa, a successful title-winning side.
Necaxa, though, moved to Aguascalientes, a state several hundred miles north of the nation's capital, and found heavy fan support in a soccer-starved region. Atlante mimicked los Rayos' move and, like countless thousands of Americans do each year, bolted to Cancun.
While Cancun finally had a first division soccer club of its own, Atlante was not exactly an illustrious club. Cancun inherited the Mexican soccer equivalent of the Kansas City Royals - a lightly regarded club that somehow won a championship more than a decade ago.
Backed by little history to speak of (last of two league titles came in 1993) and a squad barren of Mexican national team players, Atlante quietly set out on a strong initial campaign in Cancun. Atlante lost just three games this season and made its mark on the Mexican league with an uncharacteristically strong defense as only two clubs allowed fewer goals this season.
The club was able to secure a stadium - a refurbished 22,000-seater - and the fan support continued to grow as the season went on. Perhaps it was the cheap alcohol or the inexpensive food that lured people. Jersey sales were reportedly among the highest in club history as fans flocked to the stadium.
Now, soccer-rich cities such as Mexico City and Guadalajara are envious of the goings-on in Cancun. While ardent fans of Cruz Azul (last league title in 1997) and Atlas de Guadalajara (1950) continue to suffer through yet another title-less season and while hugely popular clubs Chivas de Guadalajara and Club America are left to ponder what happened, Cancun locals have another reason to be thankful they live where they live.
And perhaps Cancun can now distinguish itself from other popular Mexican vacation destinations such as Acapulco, Puerto Vallarta, Mazatlan and Cabo San Lucas. Combined, the popular quartet of cities has exactly zero Mexican First Division soccer championships. |
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