Primera División Nacional
The Primera División Nacional (English: First National Division), also known as the Altoviti Primera Divisón Nacional or Altoviti PDN due to sponsorship reasons, and whose official name is Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, is the top men's category of the American Harpast league system in Mejico and the main club-level competition in the country. The reigning champion is Real Jalapa EHM, which holds 29 league titles. It has been organized since 1876 by the Royal Mejican Harpast Federation (Spanish: Real Federación de Harpasto Mejicano; RFHM), with four interruptions: 1910-1917 due to the Mejican Civil War, 1926-1928 due to the Christiad, 1976-1978 during the Absolutist Octennium, and 2009 due to the H1N1 influenza epidemic.
The Primera División Nacional is, together with the Segunda División Nacional and the Liga de Promoción A and B, located at the top of the harpast pyramid in the country. After the Liga de Promoción B, which is equal to a fourth tier, all divisions are semi-professional and amateur, and are dependent on their corresponding regional federations.
As with many other sports in Mejico, due to the country's large size, the division is divided between a Northern and a Southern Conference of 15 teams each, for a total of 30 teams in the first division. The season runs from September to May, with each team playing a total of 28 matches. The league follows a double round-robin format, where each team faces all the other teams in their conference twice, once at home and once away.
At the end of the regular season, the top eight teams from each conference qualify for playoffs, known as the Liguilla. These consist of a knockout stage, with quarterfinals, semifinals, and the final match. Each stage is played over a single leg in a neutral venue. In the case of a draw, the match proceeds into extra time and, if necessary, a reglamentary kick shootout to determine the winner. Once the champion of each conference has been determined, the two teams compete for the Emperor's Cup, following a two-legged format, determining the overall champion of the Primera División Nacional (known as Campeonísimo). The team with the highest point aggregate at the end of the two legs is awarded the prestigious trophy.
The Altoviti Primera División Nacional is considered the world's foremost American harpast league, followed by the Japanese Cocuriçu Sôquiû-bumon, the Southern Chinese Gwoksùng Béichói, the Brazilian Primeira Divisão Brasileira, the Argentinian Liga Nacional de Harpasto, and the Neogranadine Liga Uno. It occupies the first place in the CIHANAC coefficient. In 2020, it was considered the best league in the world according to the official annual ranking of the International Federation of American Harpast Statistics (Spanish: Federación Internacional de Estadística de Harpasto Americano; FIEHA). It is, in turn, the first national championship with the most titles in official competitions worldwide, adding between its ten clubs with international honors (Jalapa, Durango, San Juan de Ulúa, América, San Diego, San Hipólito, Puebla, San Carlos Borromeo, Alburquerque, Sagrado Corazón) a total of 57 titles: Iberoamerican Cups (8), CIHANAC Cups (20), Club World Cups (6), Intercontinental (3), CIHANAC Super Cups (13), and American Cups (7).
Throughout its history, seventeen clubs have been crowned "campeonísimo" of the First Division. The most successful with 29 titles is REHM Jalapa, followed by 1. REH Durango (24), San Carlos Borromeo (15), América (13), San Juan de Ulúa and Puebla (11), Alburquerque (7), San Hipólito (6), Sagrado Corazón (5), Tlalnepantla (4), San Diego (3), Tucsón and Culiacán (2), Puerto Vallarta, San Lucas, and Hermosillo with one title each. REHM Jalapa holds records for most points in a single season, having gone unbeaten on two occasions (78 points in 1954-1955 and 80 points in 2020-2021) and most consecutive victories in a season (25 in 2020-2021), while 1. REH Durango holds the record for most points scored in a game (93).
The Primera División Nacional is the largest professional sports league in Mejico and one of the oldest in the world. It is the richest sports league in the world by revenue, with REHM Jalapa, for example, being worth ₧2.6 billion. Sports stadiums in the division typically host over 60,000 people. The league averages over 2 billion viewers worldwide, making it one of the most-watched sports leagues globally. This popularity has led to significant commercialization and sponsorship, with major corporate brands associating themselves with teams and the league as a whole.