ST. LOUIS, Mo. (First Alert 4) -Major League Soccer announced Thursday the league would be changing the structure of its schedule in 2027 to mirror other top leagues around the world.
Beginning in the late summer of 2027, the MLS will move to a summer-to-spring league schedule. The season will start in late summer and end in May the following year.
“One of the most unique qualities of Major League Soccer is the drive to evolve and improve. The change to our calendar is the next step in that evolution,” said St. Louis City SC President and General Manager Diego Gigliani. “Aligning our season with the world’s top leagues will not just increase the league’s international credibility, it also will enable us to further grow our TV audiences by moving our playoffs to May and improve our ability to attract and retain players by aligning the transfer windows.”
Due to the significant change in scheduling, 2027 will see a transitional year, according to the league. That season will run from February of 2027 to May, including a 14-game regular season and MLS Cup Playoffs.
The league said in a statement that it is also reviewing potential changes to its MLS Cup Playoffs format, but nothing has been decided on that yet.
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The schedule change announcement came on the same day MLS and its primary media partner, Apple, announced Apple TV subscribers will be able to watch all matches without an additional subscription beginning next year.
Previously, a standalone subscription was needed to access all matches. The league also has a smaller rights package with Fox Sports, showing 34 regular season matches and eight playoff matches a year.
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