Mazatlán FC is preparing for its final tournament in Liga MX; the Clausura 2026 will be the farewell tour for the Cañoneros, who will become Atlante in the second half of the year and will play in Mexico City, after only five years in the state of Sinaloa from Morelia, Michoacán.
With the sale of the stadium by Ricardo Salinas Pliego to Emilio Escalante, many changes are coming, and now Estadio El Encanto, built with 650 million pesos of public funds between 2017 and 2019, is in danger of becoming a white elephant if no tenant is found for the Mazatlán venue.
The stadium, currently known as the “Purple Home,” has several options regarding its future, as the board signed a lease agreement with the Government of the State of Sinaloa to manage the property for 10 years. The agreement was signed in 2020 and will remain in effect until 2030.
Faced with the risk of falling into oblivion, the former Kraken Stadium still has a chance of remaining relevant, but this will depend on several factors.
This stadium, located in the Pradera Dorada neighborhood of Mazatlán, Sinaloa, could become the home, if reactivated, of the Liga de Expansión franchise that belonged to Atlante and was traded to Salinas Pliego for the Cañoneros franchise.
If reactivated, there will be a team in Mazatlán, and all the infrastructure that has been put at the team’s service since 2020 will be fully utilized.
There is also a possibility that Dorados de Sinaloa could return to the state and play their home games in Mazatlán, after having moved their home games to Estadio Caliente in Tijuana in 2025 due to security concerns.
The sale of Mazatlán FC became a political issue, as the city’s mayor, Estrella Palacios, stated in an interview that she hopes Liga MX will return to the port city at some point.
“We are waiting for another First Division team to step forward so we can have a team of that caliber,” she said in the interview.
To play at the former Estadio Kraken, the Mazatlán FC management signed a 10-year lease agreement, committing to invest approximately 70 million pesos to remodel and renovate their former home.
This stadium was built by the Sinaloa state government, with an investment of approximately 652 million pesos, along with the renovation of Teodoro Mariscal Stadium, home of the Venados in the Mexican Pacific League baseball league.
“Because of course we have the infrastructure, the connectivity, and all the conditions to have a First Division team,” the Mayor added.
“We are prepared. We have shown that we are a great fan base, and we are a great destination for top-level teams, so I am sure that in the future we can have another team.
The last option is to use the stadium for musical events, as has happened in recent years; in fact, Chayanne will perform there on May 2, 2026.
The worst-case scenario is that the lease agreement is terminated, there is no activity at the stadium, and it slowly falls into disrepair and is forgotten.
The Cañoneros were founded during the pandemic, and the Quirino Ordaz administration supported the team’s move to Mazatlán after they left Morelia, Michoacán.
Source: mediotiempo
