The year 2023 is a whole new ball game for Major League Soccer. With the launch of MLS Season Pass, it means a brand-new pre-game, post-game and whiparound show for fans of MLS teams. It’s all part of the new Apple-MLS deal. And we have all of the details.
Without the talent, MLS Season Pass’ new shows wouldn’t be possible. So far, the league has hired 80 talent members ranging from commentators to co-commentators, hosts, analysts and more.
All MLS and Leagues Cup live matches are produced at MLS stadiums, including on-site talent, using a fleet of production units to produce simultaneous coverage of up to 14 matches each game night. Live studio programming is created at a newly rebuilt production facility in New York City with a trio of state-of-the-art studios that serve as the central hub for all MLS Season Pass studio programming.
Here’s what MLS has come up with for 2023 and beyond.
MLS Season Pass pre-game: MLS Countdown
In the past, the constraints of television sometimes meant that there was little to no MLS pre-game coverage. That ends now. With MLS Season Pass, where games are mostly on Saturday or Wednesday nights, the pre-game show starts 30 minutes before kickoff. So, for example, for games kicking off at 7:30pm local time (whether that’s in the Eastern, Central, Mountain or Pacific timezones), expect 30 minutes of pre-game coverage before your game starts.
Debuting with the 2023 MLS season, the pre-game show is entitled MLS Countdown. There’s a version in English-language, and a different pre-game show in Spanish-language.
On English-language broadcasts, Jillian Sakovits and Andrew Wiebe are the hosts. They are joined by analysts Nigel Reo-Coker, Calen Carr, Shep Messing and Matt Doyle.
Spanish-language broadcasts of MLS Countdown feature Tony Cherchi and Stefano Fusaro as hosts. They are joined by analysts Diego Valeri, Melissa Ortiz, and Chelsea Cabarcas.
Whip-around show: MLS 360
Featuring show hosts Liam McHugh (from NBC Sports) and Kaylyn Kyle (from beIN SPORTS), MLS has coined their whip-around show MLS 360. McHugh and Kyle are flanked by analysts Sacha Kljestan and Bradley Wright-Phillips as well as rules expert Christina Unkel.
MLS 360 is the newest whip-around show for soccer. It’ll be similar in concept to the popular Goal Rush and The Golazo Show. In MLS 360, it’ll provide live look-ins from every game, so you can see all of the goals and major incidents from the games happening concurrently.
It’s the ideal way to watch MLS games if you just want to be entertained, and don’t have any interest in one specific team (or matchup).
While not available in Spanish-language, the concept is easy for Spanish-language viewers to follow along with just as English-language viewers experience when they watch Zona Futbol in Spanish on TUDN.
Post-game: MLS Wrap-up
Last but not least, the MLS Wrap-Up airs for 30 minutes after the game ends, bringing you the analysis as well as post-match interviews with players and coaches. Coverage will be available in both English- and Spanish-language.
During the season, we can expect almost all of the games on Saturday nights to start at 7:30pm local time. That’ll number 29 Saturday nights throughout the regular season, and six Wednesday nights. So, expect the East Coast post-game shows to air approximately from 9:30pm to 10pm ET. And then the final Pacific Coast games will have post-game wrap-up coverage approximately between 9:30pm to 10pm PT. However, MLS Season Pass has no time constraints. So if there’s a huge talking point after a game, coverage can run longer than 30 minutes.
The hosts and analysts of MLS Wrap-Up are the same as MLS Countdown (see above MLS Countdown section).
We’re on the precipice of an exciting chapter in the history of soccer broadcasting in the United States. Imagine if your favorite league, no matter what league it is, was given a clean slate, to create its own pre-game, post-game and whip-around show. What would it look like?
With MLS Season Pass, MLS pre-game and post-match coverage begins February 25. That also includes the whip-around show, which will be available free (along with the games) during the opening weekend.
