Apple Is Kicking MLS Season Pass Straight Into Apple TV
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In what may be its boldest move in live sports yet, Apple is discontinuing its separate MLS Season Pass subscription next year, offering the entire lineup of Major League Soccer matches directly to all Apple TV subscribers (the service formerly known as Apple TV+).
The news, first reported by ESPN and quickly followed by outlets like Variety, was confirmed in an official press release from Apple.
We’re thrilled to bring MLS to more fans around the world next season on Apple TV. Every match, all in one place, alongside incredible Apple Originals — it’s a win for fans everywhere.
Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior vice president of Services
This move echoes the F1 deal that Apple announced last month to make Apple TV the US home to Formula One racing — without an extra subscription package. That deal led to speculation that Apple might follow suit with MLS Season Pass, but many in the industry were cautiously optimistic about the idea that Apple would drop the MLS paywall, given the much higher financial stakes. Plus, when Apple signed the MLS deal in 2022, it assumed a base level of subscription revenue and additional revenue-sharing agreements. This means Apple would have to seek the blessing of MLS to tear down the paywall, and possibly rework the financial arrangements.
It turns out that’s exactly what Apple has done. Apple and Major League Soccer have inked a revised agreement to scrap the MLS Season Pass tier and make all matches available to Apple TV subscribers at no additional cost. The agreement still needs final sign-off from the MLS Board of Governors, but it appears that this is merely a formality.
“Our partnership with Apple has always been about innovating for our fans,” added Don Garber, the commissioner of Major League Soccer. “Bringing every MLS match to Apple TV takes that vision to the next level by making it easier than ever for fans everywhere to watch, connect, and be part of the game.”
While Apple has never disclosed subscriber or revenue numbers for its MLS Season Pass, which is sold as a separate subscription package, the package must be generating some revenue to offset the $2.5 billion it’s reportedly committed to paying MLS to stream its matches for ten years. Apple has frequently discounted MLS Season Pass over the past two seasons, and this fall it lowered the paywall for MLS Playoff matches — a move that was initially assumed to be a way to encourage more 2026 subscribers, but now appears to have simply been a sign of things to come.
The decision to eliminate the separate subscription will undoubtedly make Apple TV even more of a loss leader than it already is — a report earlier this year suggested its losing more than $1 billion a year — but for Apple, it seems the incentive is more about increasing the halo effect of its ecosystem with value-added services than turning a profit on any one part of them.
