The FMF has opened a formal investigation into players of Tepatitlan FC over a possible breach of the competition integrity rules tied to betting, and the players involved will stay barred from playing while the case runs.
The Comision Disciplinaria announced the procedure in a statement on Friday, October 23, 2026. The investigation covers players of the Liga BBVA Expansion MX club under the FMF Code of Ethics and the Reglamento de Sanciones, in particular Apendice IV, the section on Integrity of the Competition.
The commission said it will evaluate the evidence in its possession and grant those involved their right to a hearing. It will announce the resolution once the investigations conclude, and it confirmed that during the procedure the players remain barred from participating in the competition.
What Apendice IV Covers
Apendice IV is the FMF rulebook section on match manipulation and betting. It bars participants from improperly influencing the result, development, conduct or any other aspect of a match, and it requires players to report any related approach made to them.
The possible consequences are severe. The maximum sanction contemplated for these conducts is definitive disqualification from Mexican soccer.
No Player Has Been Named
The statement does not name any player, and it does not identify any specific match under review. How many Tepatitlan players are involved is not stated either.
The announcement lands amid a public controversy around Tepatitlan midfielder Dieter Villalpando. RECORD reported that alleged conversations attributed to the player, said to show him seeking access to sports betting tip groups, circulated on social media, and that he had previously been left out of the squad to face Dorados de Sinaloa.
About a month ago, Villalpando acknowledged in public comments that he places bets online, saying he bets on other sports. None of that has been adjudicated, and it bears repeating: the FMF has not named Villalpando, or any other player, in this procedure.
A Second Open Case at the Same Club
Tepatitlan were already under scrutiny. On October 18, the league announced a separate investigation into a possible improper lineup by the club, and that case has not produced a ruling either.
The two matters are distinct. One questions a lineup; the other goes to the integrity of the competition itself, and it will end with a resolution the FMF says it will publish when the investigation concludes.
