MLS games head to Apple TV in 2026 as Season Pass ends

Major League Soccer is stepping onto a bigger stage next year, when all of its matches will find a new home on Apple TV.

Beginning in the 2026 season, MLS games will be available on Apple’s flagship streaming platform, which currently includes Major League Baseball games as well as scripted series like “Severance.”

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

Apple and MLS had inked a 10-year media rights deal in 2022 that saw Apple become the exclusive global home to the U.S. professional soccer league. However, rather than feature matches on the fledgling streaming service, Apple instead launched Season Pass for an additional subscription solely for MLS games.

“This idea that you could watch all of our matches in one place with a push of the button globally was unprecedented. We really, really liked that concept with Season Pass, and it worked because people reacted really well to the product,” MLS Deputy Commissioner Gary Stevenson said in an interview.

Season Pass — which costs $14.99 a month, compared to the $12.99 charged for the separate monthly Apple TV subscription — kicked off in 2023. Apple doesn’t provide subscriber metrics for its streaming services.

Stevenson said that conversations about moving the league to Apple TV started 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,'” said Stevenson. “So this was good news for us.”

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

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

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

Most recently Apple and Formula 1 inked a five-year exclusive media rights deal, meaning all races will stream on Apple TV in the U.S. beginning next year. Apple is paying roughly $140 million annually for the F1 rights, CNBC previously reported.

Apple has been looking to change the current sports viewing experience. While live sports garners huge audiences in the pay TV bundle, the rise of streaming has led to a fractured market in which consumers often require multiple subscriptions to watch one sport.

At a recent event, Apple Senior Vice President of Services Eddy Cue said the market has “gone backwards,” when it comes to sports viewership.

“You used to buy one subscription, your cable subscription, and you got pretty much everything they had. Now, there’s…