MLS games are heading to Apple TV in 2026 with the Season Pass ending

Major League Soccer is headed to a bigger stage next year, with all its matches finding a new home on Apple TV.

Starting in the 2026 season, Major League Soccer games will be available on… apple’The company’s flagship streaming platform, which currently includes Major League Baseball games as well as scripted series such as “Severance.”

The move represents a major shift for both the league and Apple’s media strategy, as the tech giant will end Season Pass — Apple’s separate subscription service for MLS games.

Apple and MLS signed a 10-year media rights agreement in 2022, which saw Apple become the exclusive global home of Major League Soccer. However, instead of showing the matches on the fledgling streaming service, Apple instead launched the Season Pass for an additional subscription just for MLS games.

“The idea of ​​being able to watch all our games in one place with the push of a button globally was unprecedented. We really liked that concept with Season Pass, and it worked because people engaged so well with the product,” MLS Deputy Commissioner Gary Stevenson said in an interview.

The Season Pass — which costs $14.99 per month, compared to $12.99 for a separate monthly subscription to Apple TV — launches in 2023. Apple does not provide subscriber metrics for its streaming services.

Stephenson said talks about moving the league to Apple TV began as Apple’s main streaming platform grew.

“They came to us and said, ‘Let’s put it on Apple TV,’ and we said, ‘We’re all in,’” Stevenson said. “So this was good news for us.”

While Stephenson didn’t go into detail, some terms of the deal have changed as part of the move to Apple TV.

“But it doesn’t feel like it’s a big renegotiation because what we’ve focused on is distribution and how to make it a better, more accessible experience for the fans,” Stevenson said.

Since Apple jumped into the streaming game, it has systematically added sports to its platform and secured exclusive rights in an increasingly fragmented sports viewing ecosystem.

Recently Apple and Formula 1 The company has signed a five-year exclusive media rights deal, meaning all races will be broadcast on Apple TV in the US starting next year. Apple pays approximately $140 million annually for the rights to Formula 1, CNBC previously reported.

Apple is looking to change the current sports viewing experience. While live sports attract huge audiences in the pay-TV package, the rise of streaming has led to a fragmented market with consumers often requiring multiple subscriptions to watch a single sport.

At a recent event, Apple’s senior vice president of services, Eddy Cue, said the market has “taken a step backwards” when it comes to sports viewers.

“You used to buy one subscription, your cable subscription, and you got almost everything they had. Now, there are so many different subscriptions, so I think that needs to be fixed,” Keough said during a panel in October.

Since MLS began its media rights deal with Apple, there has been little information about the Season Pass’s performance — and some doubts about its success.

However, MLS Commissioner Don Garber told CNBC Sport in an interview last year that Apple Season Pass subscriptions exceeded expectations, though he declined to provide specific numbers.

“We have more subscribers than we and Apple thought,” Garber told CNBC at the time, adding that there would be more transparency later.

Apple also isn’t releasing numbers for Apple TV, but Cue reportedly said the platform has “well over 45 million” viewers.

The league’s broader reach will come after MLS completes its 30th season. It is working to capitalize on the growing popularity of soccer in the United States, especially ahead of the World Cup to be held in North America next year.

The league, which pales in comparison to the popularity of the NFL, NBA and other American professional sports that existed for decades before Major League Soccer, has also seen a surge in fanbase in recent years after global superstar Lionel Messi began playing for Inter Miami CF.