Fox Sports will launch its new exclusive Major League Soccer package Saturday, with a major focus on providing linear TV exposure for the league's 28th season.
Fox Sports will distribute approximately 34 regular-season games as part of the four-year deal, with at least 15 regular-season games on Fox. The remainder of the games will air on FS1. Fox Deportes will air all Fox and FS1 telecasts in Spanish.
Fox will open up its coverage on February 25 with Nashville SC-New York City FC, while FS1 on Sunday will air the Seattle Sounders FC-Colorado Rapids contest, according to Fox Sports.
Fox Sports’s MLS deal does not include streaming rights, which Apple TV purchased as part of a 10-year deal that includes all MLS regular season and postseason games. Apple TV's MLS Season Pass will feature all MLS regular and post season games for $14.99 per month.
Still, Fox Sports President and CEO Eric Shanks said that the deal emphasizes the continued value and importance of live sports programming on linear TV.
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“Sure, [MLS] did an [Apple TV] streaming deal, but they really wanted to have games on broadcast every week,” he said.■
