Inter Miami’s Lionel Messi during a friendly match between Inter Miami and Newell’s Old Boys at DRV PNK Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Florida on February 15, 2024.
Arturo Jimenez | Anadolu | Getty Images
Major League Soccer set several regular season records, including attendance and sponsorship records, thanks in part to international superstar Lionel Messi and corporate strategy.
Major League Soccer (MLS) has been attracting high-profile athletes such as Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez and is banking on the sport’s growing popularity in the United States to solidify its fan base after nearly three decades in the league. It has even created a corporate team to help the club implement its new business strategy.
It seems to be paying off. Nearly 11.5 million people watched games during Major League Soccer’s regular season that ended last weekend, the most in its history, according to the league. This is a 5% increase from last year and a 14% increase from 2022.
While these statistics pale in comparison to other American professional sports leagues — the National Basketball Association more than For example, with 22.5 million viewers during the 2023-2024 regular season – Major League Soccer (MLS) appears poised to take off.
Last year, Major League Soccer’s Inter Miami signed Messi. caused A surge in attendance, jersey and other product sales, and overall fan engagement. The halo effect of Messi, often referred to as the greatest player of all time, seems to persist even when Messi is on the field less Missed games this season due to injury.
This past weekend Inter Miami it’s over Messi scored 74 points this season, breaking the record for the most points scored in a Major League Soccer season. Messi scored a hat trick for the first time in the American League. Major League Soccer Playoffs start This week.
Fans hold up signs in support of Lionel Messi before the start of a Major League Soccer (MLS) game at Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, USA on May 18, 2024 Placard, the match was played between Inter Miami CF (1) and DCUnited (0).
Simon M. Bruti | Simon M. Bruti Getty Images Sports | Getty Images
But it’s not just the talent on the field that makes a difference.
This is Chris McGowan’s first full season Serve Since joining the league in June 2023, he has served as the league’s executive vice president and chief club performance officer. .
While much of the season has been focused on building McGowan’s squad, he said they have also developed a strategic plan in terms of identifying focus areas and building relationships with clubs. McGowan’s role is that of an advisor, making recommendations that the team can choose to implement or not.
For example, McGowan and his team helped the New York Red Bulls “make some decisions about how they’re going to roll out premium seating at the stadium” this season.
“We facilitate continued growth by providing clubs with a wealth of resources in areas such as sharing best practice quickly and effectively,” McGowan said. “Being able to quickly obtain information for clubs to make commercial decisions…those things It probably didn’t happen as systematically and effectively as it does now.”
Start a new record
Nashville SC fans cheer on their team before the game at Joda Park on February 25, 2024 in Nashville, Tennessee.
Johnny Isquierdo | Getty Images Sports | Getty Images
Larger audiences attract more sponsorship dollars.
This season, MLS and Soccer United Marketing (SUM), the commercial arm of MLS, have signed 18 new sponsorship partners. So far this year, league and SUM sponsorship revenue is up 13%, with club level sponsorship revenue also up 13% over the same period.
Sponsorship revenue at both league and club level is at an all-time high.
Messi’s Inter Miami jersey continues to be a fan favorite, becoming the best-selling jersey in the league. Adidas also ranks first globally in sales of individual player jerseys, according to Major League Soccer.
Meanwhile, its social media following is growing faster than any other major North American men’s sports league on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube, according to the league. Since the beginning of the year, the number of followers on TikTok has increased by 26%. Followers on YouTube increased by 21% and followers on Instagram increased by 10%.
According to MLS data, Inter Miami is the most followed North American sports team on TikTok with 9.4 million followers. It is the third most followed North American sports team on Instagram, with 17.2 million followers.
Like other U.S. sports leagues, Major League Soccer has been working to expand its audience and international reach. earlier this month it sign Agreement with German digital media platform OneFootball to provide highlights, statistics and other content to a global audience.
When it comes to TV ratings (an important statistic for most other professional sports leagues in the United States), Major League Soccer (MLS) is in a league of its own. Alliance has exclusive media rights agreement apple, This means that most games can only be viewed through MLS Season Pass on Apple TV, which is a separate subscription alongside the Apple TV+ streaming service.
There is no viewership data for Major League Soccer Season Ticket, but Apple executives said in a public call that viewership has increased since Messi joined the league.
