MLS - Apple TV Deal

[Guest]

https://theathletic.com/news/mls-tv-deal-espn-apple-univision/cbC0ubEBpHsb/

Apple has bought the rights to all MLS broadcasts for 10 years. It's not totally clear to me, but it looks like you would have to pay for an AppleTV subscription and then another subscription on top of that to get most games, unless you are a season ticket holder. There will still be some games broadcast on ESPN and some other national broadcasters. And there will not longer be local broadcast teams?!

That's my understanding at least. I hope I am wrong about some of that. I want to keep our local commentators. And I am not thrilled about needing to subscribe to a platform I don't have to watch the games. And if you need to subscribe to an extra package to see the games, I feel like that would harm the visibility of a league that is trying to grow in reach.

[Guest]

Apple's deal is for OTT/digital streaming -- I don't think this eliminates broadcasters (cable/TV), but Apple owns global OTT for the entire league

[Guest]

Doesn't seem that way - What fans need to know about MLS’s streaming deal with Apple - Sounder At Heart

[Guest]

This is just MLS building what MLB did with MLB.tv --- Sounder At Heart doesn't know what they are talking about!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Guest]

$250 million per season. More than current mlb deal, more than twice as much as current mls deal ($90M).

the only downside is the length- 10 years is a long time and the value of this deal will end up benefiting Apple. Current nbc/champions league deal is $338M for the most expensive league in the world.

short term, great deal for mls. Will still be able to sell additional game rights to ESPN/Univision.

• Every MLS and Leagues Cup match available through Apple TV (no need to pay for TV to watch games that are broadcast on TV elsewhere)
• A “broad selection” of MLS and Leagues Cup matches available to Apple TV+ subscribers
• To access every match, a subscription different from Apple TV+ will be required
• No local blackouts or other restrictions (except Leagues Cup matches, which will be unavailable in Mexico)
• Select MLS Next Pro and MLS Next matches will be streamed
• Live whip-around coverage every week
• Pregame, halftime, postgame shows, plus highlights, analysis, replays and original programming
• All MLS and Leagues Cup matches will include English and Spanish announcers, with French announcers available for any game with a Canadian club
• MLS season ticket holders will receive a free subscription
• Price has yet to be announced

What this means for soccer fans in the U.S. is a slight alteration in how you watch the games. The biggest change is needing the Apple TV app instead of ESPN+, which isn’t really a big deal as both are available just about everywhere. Otherwise, it’s nice every game will be available in one place. Previously a match broadcast on Fox or Univision wouldn’t be available on ESPN+.

[Guest]

I think if you pay for the MLS package, you don't need to also pay for Apple TV +. If you do pay for Apple TV+ then you would get some of the games but not all of them.