MLS and Fox are looking to capitalize on this summer’s World Cup momentum.
On Wednesday, Fox announced its 34-game MLS schedule as the 2026 season prepares to kickoff on Saturday. It’s the final year of Fox’s current non-exclusive media rights agreement to broadcast a select number of MLS games each season. Apple TV will continue to be the exclusive home for every MLS game through the 2028-29 season, though the upcoming season will be the first in which Apple and the league have removed the Season Pass paywall, instead choosing to make every game available to all Apple TV subscribers.
Still, Fox’s inventory remains key from an exposure standpoint for the league. Apple TV still lags behind other streamers in terms of usage, so any linear television slots that MLS can maintain helps keep the league top of mind for more casual fans.
Of course, something else that should keep soccer at the forefront for casual fans is this summer’s World Cup hosted in North America. The quadrennial tournament, which begins on June 11 and concludes with the Final on July 19, will, in all likelihood, be the most-watched soccer event in the history of the United States. As such, it’s a huge opportunity for MLS to gain fans as interest in the sport will be at an all-time high.
The league is pausing play for nearly two months to accommodate the tournament, and its many players who will be participating. But the league is scheduled to resume play on July 17, two days prior to the World Cup Final, and Fox Sports, the English-language World Cup broadcaster in the United States, will air a doubleheader that Friday to showcase the league.
Atlanta United FC will travel to Nashville SC for a primetime matchup at 8 p.m. ET on Fox. Then one of MLS’s best rivalries, El Tráfico, will kickoff at 10:30 p.m. ET on FS1, with LA Galaxy taking on Los Angeles FC.
Those two games should provide some early indications of how large the World Cup bump will be for MLS.
About Drew Lerner
Drew Lerner is a staff writer for Awful Announcing and an aspiring cable subscriber. He previously covered sports media for Sports Media Watch. Future beat writer for the Oasis reunion tour.