Apple has secured the Major League Soccer broadcast rights, in a massive ten-year deal.
Rather than offer the games via its regular app, it will instead launch a new subscription-based MLS tier, with a handful of major matches available to regular Apple TV subscribers, no doubt as a try-before-you-buy play.
Apple is paying a minimum of US$250 million per year for the rights, according to Sports Business Journal.
MLS currently airs between Fox, ESPN, and Univision in the US. This staggered viewing schedule hampers the uptake of the league. This Apple deal bring all the games under one roof, in the US.
“What we’re trying to do here is aggregate as much of our content together to make it easy for our fans, wherever they are, however they consume,” Commissioner Don Garber said of the deal.
Apple is fast becoming a major player in the sporting broadcast world.
In March, the tech giant locked in a deal with Major League Baseball to air the Friday night games on Apple TV+, and is reportedly throwing its hat into the ring for both the NFL Sunday Ticket package, and the Formula One rights.
It is also producing a Formula One film starring Brad Pitt.