It is a truism that referees are doing a good job if you don’t notice them. It also appears to be the official policy of MLS.
Salient plotlines as the 2024 campaign unfurls are the first full season of Lionel Messi in Miami, the controversial withdrawal of most MLS clubs from the US Open Cup and the use of replacement referees because of a labor dispute.
For the first of these, the league’s official channels very much have you covered. But fans watching MLS on Apple TV, which streams every match, would learn little about the other two newsworthy narratives. Which is just how the league wants it.
This is how the referee was introduced to viewers by commentator Jake Zivin shortly before kick-off in Inter Miami’s 5-0 win over Orlando City on 2 March: “The man in charge today, Jaime Herrera, he refereed Houston and Sporting Kansas City last week, a 47-year-old experienced referee originally from Mexico.”
It might have been of interest to viewers if Zivin had added that Herrera was a last-minute replacement for the replacement. The original choice was dropped a couple of hours before kick-off after photos emerged on social media of him wearing an Inter Miami shirt.
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Nor is it a stretch to imagine that viewers might appreciate some context around controversial calls. Especially given the spotlight on Messi’s every move, it would seem pertinent that arguably the greatest player of all time is earning fouls (or not) awarded by officials plucked from the lower divisions, the college game and the ranks of the retired.
“I know the players and the coaches and the technical staffs in the league are very nervous about it, I think it’s going to be one of those storylines that we’re talking about in the first month of the season depending on how long the lockout goes,” Taylor Twellman, Apple TV’s top MLS analyst, told the Awful Announcing podcast last month.
Or not. The Athletic obtained a memo sent by MLS to TV and radio broadcasters last weekend instructing them to minimize references to the referees and the lockout: “Fans tune in to watch and listen to the game. They aren’t focused on the officials,” it claimed. “Therefore, we don’t believe it is necessary to belabor the point during the match. It is best to mention the situation in the pregame and move on.”
The…