MLS eagerly anticipates that the World Cup will significantly drive the league’s development in the medium term and make the FIFA tournament a key element in its global commercial expansion plans.
Since the league’s inception in 1994, MLS has weathered several ups and downs and experimented with various strategies to increase its popularity. However, the current moment appears the most promising yet, with Lionel Messi serving as its main ambassador and the USMNT finally competing at a high level, enabling dreams of World Cup success alongside Mexico and Canada.
MLS Continues to Grow, Capitalizing on Lionel Messi’s Presence
In an interview with World Soccer Talk, MLS co-founder and former US Soccer Federation president Alan Rothenberg openly credited Messi’s impact. Messi is driving the league’s global growth and attracting popularity, especially among Latin American and South American fans.
Noting that Zlatan Ibrahimović and Thierry Henry also played in the MLS, the league was betting on veteran athletes from world football to attract new investors. However, the impact of these stars does not match the brilliance that Messi is bringing to the MLS at the moment.
“The other thing too, it’s pretty clear, and it’s that they aren’t treating it as, you know, a paid retirement. They’re really getting into it, supporting the team, going out and making public appearances, and they’re talking up the game. And so that’s really crucial because in many cases. The other players that have come in, it’s a nice way to finish their career, but they were not committed, if you will, to building the sport in America,” said Rothenberg.
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“Beckham is obviously because he’s behind the ownership of Inter Miami and probably key to bringing Messi over, then Messi, and as I said, he just got here, so it’s harder to tell, but based on his initial coming to the LAFC team, Son looks like he’s comparably one that is really here to play, enjoy, be part of the team and be part of the growth of the league, which is great.”
Messi Makes More Impact in MLS than Cristiano Ronaldo in the Saudi League
An interesting aspect of the interview centered on Cristiano Ronaldo’s role as the main ambassador for the Saudi Professional League in 2022. Despite the Portuguese idol, the league has failed to secure significant television contracts.
On the other hand, MLS has adopted a strategy that does not rely solely on Messi’s presence as a major ambassador, and this has become a positive point for the league. For this reason, Rothenberg was very clear in stating that attracting stars alone is not enough to guarantee an improvement in the championship’s quality.
“It’s the right player, but equally important, it draws attention beyond just the people that are in the stadium. And I’m now talking about people that are going to watch matches on television and the goal that every pro league and everywhere really depends on is media money.”
