Apple TV to offer all MLS matches without extra subscription next year

By JOE REEDY Apple TV subscribers will be able to watch all Major League Soccer matches without an additional subscription beginning next year During the first three years of MLS -year billion agreement with Apple a standalone Season Pass subscription was needed to access all matches During this season over matches were simulcast on both MLS Season Pass and Apple TV including the league s Sunday Night Soccer package Dropping the separate subscription was stated Thursday at an owners meeting Apple has made its Friday night Major League Baseball doubleheaders available to all subscribers since its start in It in the past few days secured U S rights to Formula for five years which will also be available beginning next season Related Articles Jon Stewart extends Daily Show contract through Disney channels including ESPN are dropped from YouTube TV amid dispute What to watch Anniversary is an American nightmare that seems scarily plausible Top horror movies of Do you agree with our No pick Stranger Things finale to hit theaters Netflix simultaneously Making the MLS games more accessible also comes as the United States hosts the World Cup next year and the league contemplates switching to a late summer to spring calendar matching the European model in The current season runs from late February to early December MLS deputy commissioner Gary Stevenson reported Apple approached MLS early this year about the possibility of moving all of its matches to Apple TV RELATED MLS owners vote to shift soccer season to a late-summer to spring calendar in We had been testing Sunday Night Soccer on Apple TV and we got a really good reception to it Then we talked to them about the foreseen schedule change and they thought that made sense So it all kind of seemed like the perfect evolution to what we started and we think that the fans are going to find the experience and the value to be significantly better Stevenson reported MLS season ticket holders will receive Apple TV subscriptions after previously receiving MLS Season Pass MLS noted it averaged million gross live match viewers per week across streaming and linear platforms for its weekly matches a increase over Apple has worldwide rights to MLS which have benefitted them in South America after Lionel Messi joined Inter Miami in The league has also seen an influx of Asian viewers after Son Heung-Min began playing for LAFC in August Messi and Son had the top two jersey sales in the league this season Messi and Son s clubs have both advanced to the league quarterfinals LAFC is at Vancouver on Nov while Inter Miami travels to Cincinnati on Nov AP MLS https apnews com hub major-league-soccer