Liga MX rivals Chivas, Atlas to clash in Fresno next month

For the first time in its nearly 100-year history, the Clásico Tapatío between C.D. Guadalajara (Chivas) and Club Atlas will be played outside of Guadalajara.

The rivals will meet July 10 in an exhibition at Fresno’s Chukchansi Park. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.

Tickets are already on sale and 6,000 of the 16,000 available have already been sold.

“They’re flying like hot potatoes,” Latin Entertainment promoter Fred Godinez said Tuesday.

Prices start at $26 and go up to $76 for field level. They can be purchased online, at the Chukchansi Park Box Office or at both Don Roberto Jewelers locations (Sierra Vista Mall and Chestnut and Butler avenues).

Just last month, Chivas stunned Atlas in the Liga MX quarterfinals with 4-1 win in the second leg (the two teams tied 0-0 in the first leg) that was marred by fan violence when Atlas fans starting fighting and running onto the field, causing a 15-minute delay.

Chivas lost 3-0 in the semifinals to eventual champion Club Santos Laguna.

Godinez said he is working with stadium officials to make sure what happened in the quarterfinal match will not happen in Fresno.

“We’re not going to let a few hot-heads ruin what’s going on here,” said Godinez, who added that no incidents took place at the Cruz Azul-Club León friendly that drew 15,087 fans in March.

The matchup is the equivalent of a Bay-Bridge World Series between the Oakland A’s and San Francisco Giants or a Subway Series between the New York Yankees and Mets, he said.

“This is a Clásico,” Godinez said. “Outside of Chivas-América, this is the biggest matchup in Mexican soccer.”

Club Atlas and Guadalajara have played against each other since 1916 and are sure to bring a sellout crowd to downtown Fresno, with both teams hailing from the capital of the Mexican state of Jalisco (pronounced HA-LEE-SCO). The rivalry is known as the Clásico Tapatío because Tapatío refers to anyone from the city of Guadalajara. Chivas leads the all-time series 79-64-62 (win-loss-tie).

Godinez recently spoke with the Mexican Consul in Fresno, Vicente Sánchez Ventura, and said Fresno County is home to the largest number of residents from Jalisco in the United States at about 120,000.

“Fresno has always supported everything our company has done,” Godinez said. “It deserves a game like this. Why not bring a little piece of their home state back to them?”

Latin Entertainment has brought seven Mexican League soccer exhibitions to Fresno, with nearly all of them drawing crowds in the tens of thousands. In 2012, the company set a stadium record when 16,126 fans watched Club América and Chiapas F.C.

The July 10 exhibition will feature first-team rosters for both Atlas and Chivas, Godinez said, minus any players who will be called up for the CONCACAF Gold Cup that starts July 7.

It is the second of two games Chivas will play in California this year. The other is a July 7 exhibition against Club León at Sacramento’s Raley Field.

Chivas have a strong tradition — including 11 first-division titles, seven Campeón de Campeónes, one InterLiga, one Copa Challenger, four Copa Oros de Occidente, and two Copa México titles. One of 10 founding members in Mexico’s First Division, they’ve never been relegated to the Second Division.

Atlas doesn’t have as many trophies as cross-town rival Chivas (only one First Division title in 1950-51 and a handful of other trophies) but has had success at the academy level, breeding stars like Jared Borgetti, Oswaldo Sánchez, Pável Pardo, Rafael Márquez and Andrés Guardado, who was recently named the Dutch Eredivisie Player of the Year after helping PSV Eindhoven win the title last month.

▪ The Fresno Fuego match against FC Tucson, originally scheduled for July 10, has been moved to July 11. Fuego tickets for July 10 will still be honored for the PDL match only.

▪ Sacramento Republic FC will host English Premier League club Newcastle United in a July 18 exhibition at Bonney Field. It’s the second year in a row the Republic will play an EPL team. Last summer, Sacramento lost 3-1 to West Bromwich Albion. Tickets go on sale June 9 via Ticketmaster.com.

▪ The Fresno chapter of American Outlaws is teaming with Fresno Freeze FC to watch all of the U.S. Women’s National Team matches in the upcoming FIFA Women’s World Cup. The watch-parties will be at Peeve’s Public House on the Fulton Mall. Group matches are scheduled for 4:30 p.m. June 8 against Australia, 5 p.m. June 12 vs. Sweden and 5 p.m. June 16 vs. Nigeria. More details can be found on AO Fresno Facebook page.

This story was originally published June 2, 2015 at 8:55 PM with the headline "Liga MX rivals Chivas, Atlas to clash in Fresno next month."