Major League Soccer employs Lionel Messi, perhaps the most popular human on planet earth, and its 2024 plan to capitalize on his greatness appears to be this:
1. Put the first match of Messi’s first full season behind a paywall, on a Wednesday night, to hide it from most casual sports fans.
2. Incite a power struggle with the U.S. Soccer Federation that is once again angering dedicated supporters as the 2024 season kicks off.
3. Lock out MLS referees, and scramble for replacement officials, to draw condemnation from the MLS Players’ Association and distract from what should be the most anticipated season in league history.
Messi, of course, wowed in the opener, a 2-0 Miami win over Real Salt Lake. But did you anticipate it? Did you watch? Did you even know it was happening?
Diehards knew, of course, but I asked a group chat of seven on Wednesday: Will you watch tonight? Have you paid for Apple’s MLS Season Pass?
One said he had paid, but wouldn’t be watching. Another gets complimentary access as a season-ticket holder with an MLS club. The five others hadn’t paid, and probably won’t. Some said they’d find an illegal stream Wednesday. Others wouldn’t bother.
These, to be clear, are all certified soccer sickos in their mid-to-late 20s. All are American soccer fans — and Americans, and soccer fans; all but one live in the Americas, and all but two in the United States. They’ll exchange dozens of messages on Premier League matchdays, and also during the Asian Cup and Africa Cup of Nations. They’ll watch everything from the Belgian Pro League to the CONCACAF Champions Cup, almost any footy they can find.
But most didn’t want to pay $100 to watch one season of a single league that probably ranks somewhere between 10th and 20th globally.
Perhaps they’ll cave in the dog days of summer, or when Messi lights up social media, or when their hometown Philadelphia Union catch fire; perhaps they won’t.
And that’s semi-alarming.
“If you’ve lost the ’Chat where Daniel Gazdag has been mentioned 100x more than the President of the United States’ demographic,” one member wrote of MLS, “then you’re f***ed.”
For those not in the know, Gazdag is a 27-year-old Hungarian midfielder for the aforementioned Union.
MLS’ deal with Apple for global broadcast rights, worth at least $2.5 billion over 10 years, is a…