Major League Soccer (MLS) and Apple are planning major changes to their streaming agreement.
The contract will now end in 2029 which is three and a half years sooner than originally planned.
The new agreement includes higher payments and is adjusted to fit MLS's upcoming schedule change.
According to Goal, under the new deal, MLS will get $200 million for 2026, $107.5 million for the shorter 2027 season and $275 million for each of the 2027-28 and 2028-29 seasons.
The updated payments on average are similar to what was planned in the original deal but they give MLS more money earlier and result in about $50 million more in total revenue through mid 2029.
Also, Apple can no longer end the deal after 2027 which means it is committed to the revised plan for the next several season.
"MLS officials and Apple pushed changes in the wake of two related strategic shifts: the league's decision to fold the separate Season Pass into Apple TV’s main bundle for 2026 and the league’s plan to flip to a fall–spring calendar in 2027," Goal reported.
The league can test market earlier after the World Cup and will have the option to negotiate a new deal or extend the agreement with Apple once this term ends.
