New York (AFP) – Major League Soccer will change its competition schedule in 2027 to align with the world’s top football leagues in a decision commissioner Don Garber Thursday called one of the most important in the history of the 30-year-old league. The North American league currently runs from late February through early December, including the regular season and the MLS Cup playoffs. The change will see the season kick off in mid-July and run through May, with a winter break from mid-December to February.
“Today our owners made a decision that I think is one of the most important decisions in our league’s history,” Garber said during a virtual press conference after the MLS board of governors approved the change at its meeting in Palm Beach, Florida. Garber said the shift will strengthen MLS clubs’ global competitiveness and create better opportunities in the transfer market. “It marks the start of a new era for our league and for soccer in North America,” Garber said.
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Before the first full season under the new schedule in 2027-2028, MLS will organize a shortened transition season from February to May 2027, with a regular season of 14 matches followed by playoffs. Garber said that after two years of discussion and review, when it came time for a vote, there was “overwhelming support” for the shift, despite concerns such as weather difficulties for northernmost clubs, including those in Canada. “Frankly, I think there was more support for it than I expected,” Garber said.
Toronto FC issued a statement of their own noting “challenges related to the weather for a number of the league’s most northern-based teams” but concluding that “the benefits to the future league product outweighed the potential challenges.” Although the start and end dates will change, 90 percent of MLS matches will still be played within the “footprint” of the current schedule. But the new calendar will synch better not only with the worldwide transfer windows but also with FIFA’s international windows. This month, the league has paused the MLS Cup playoffs between the first and second rounds as players are released for international duty.
Changes are also in the offing for the league’s competition format. No details were disclosed, but it has been reported that MLS will switch from its current Eastern and Western conference regular-season system to a single-table format.
– Apple TV streaming – MLS and Apple TV also announced on Thursday that beginning in 2026, league matches will be available to subscribers of the streaming service without the additional purchase of the MLS Season Pass package. The move comes after the league announced that this year’s MLS Cup playoffs would be available to all Apple TV subscribers. Apple TV acquired the exclusive global broadcasting rights for the MLS in 2022 through a decade-long agreement valued at approximately $2.5 billion. The platform began streaming the league in 2023, the year it gained global attention with Argentine superstar Lionel Messi’s arrival at Inter Miami.
MLS and Apple are eyeing a growth in interest in football as the United States co-hosts the World Cup with Mexico and Canada next year. In addition to the MLS regular season and playoffs, Apple TV will also offer the Leagues Cup, the annual joint tournament between MLS and Mexican league clubs, as well as the All-Star Game and other special events.
© 2024 AFP
