How to Watch MLS in 2026: Season Pass, Apple TV and What Changed

Last updated: September 2026

MLS Season Pass no longer exists. Every Major League Soccer match in 2026 is included with an ordinary Apple TV subscription — $14.99 a month or $119 a year as of August 28, 2026 — with nothing extra to buy and no blackouts anywhere in the United States. A further 34 regular-season matches simulcast on FOX or FS1, and 15 of those are on the FOX broadcast network, which an antenna picks up for nothing.

That is the whole answer. The rest is detail: what changed, what it costs, and the routes that cost less than a full year of Apple TV.

Do you still need MLS Season Pass in 2026?

No. You cannot buy it even if you want to.

On November 13, 2025, the MLS Board of Governors approved folding Season Pass into the main Apple TV service. The standalone subscription stopped being offered at the end of the 2025 season, and from the 2026 season every match became part of the base Apple TV subscription at no additional cost.

This was a real restructure of the 10-year, $2.5 billion agreement Apple and MLS signed in 2022, not a rebrand. Season Pass had been a walled garden: you subscribed to Apple TV for the shows, then paid again for the soccer. League officials said the goal was to make matches as accessible as the other sports Apple carries, such as Formula 1 and Major League Baseball. Commissioner Don Garber said Season Pass viewership had grown roughly 50% to average about 120,000 viewers per match in 2025 — a figure he conceded had not been through standard industry auditing.

If you held a renewing Season Pass subscription, Apple converted it to an Apple TV subscription in early 2026 at a price the company said would be the same as or less than what you were paying.

Is MLS included with an Apple TV subscription?

Yes, completely. One subscription covers:

• All 510 regular-season matches (30 teams, 34 matches each)
• The full Audi MLS Cup Playoffs, including MLS Cup on December 18, 2026
• Leagues Cup — all 62 matches of the August 4 to September 6 tournament
• The MLS All-Star Game and Campeones Cup
• Studio programming, on-demand replays and highlights

Apple carries it in more than 100 countries and regions. Playoff coverage runs with English and Spanish commentary, with select French options as well.

There is no separate MLS tier, no per-club package and no per-match purchase. The Apple TV app runs on Roku, Fire TV, Samsung and LG smart TVs, Google TV, PlayStation, Xbox, Android phones, Windows PCs and any browser at tv.apple.com — you do not need Apple hardware. Family Sharing covers up to five additional family members. The same subscription now carries Formula 1 in the US, covered in our guide to watching F1 without cable.

MLS Season Pass price in 2026 — what changed

Season Pass used to cost $14.99 a month, $99 for the season, or $79 for the season if you already subscribed to Apple TV. Those prices are retired. Here is what the same money buys now.

Two things moved in opposite directions. The soccer got cheaper — a Season Pass plus Apple TV household paid $178 a year at list price and now pays $119. But Apple raised the base subscription on August 28, 2026, its fourth increase in four years, so a subscriber who never cared about MLS pays $20 a year more for a bundle they did not ask for.

Apple also sells an Apple TV and Peacock bundle. Peacock's bundle page would not display pricing when checked in September 2026, so confirm the current rate at signup rather than trusting a figure quoted elsewhere.

Apple TV MLS blackout rules (are there any?)

There are none. This is the single biggest practical difference between MLS and every other American league.

Both Apple and MLS state plainly that matches stream with no blackouts. Your local club's home match is available to you at home. There is no regional sports network carve-out, no in-market restriction, no "this game is not available in your area" screen. If you live in Seattle, you watch the Sounders; if you live in Columbus, you watch the Crew.

Compare that with MLB, where local coverage is still carved up by territory, or the NFL, where the Sunday afternoon window is governed by market rules. MLS has not worked that way since Apple took over streaming in 2023. It is why MLS is the easiest major US league to follow without cable, and why this guide is shorter than our Premier League or Champions League equivalents.

The one restriction that does apply is geographic in a different sense: availability depends on the country you subscribe from. Many services prohibit circumventing regional licensing in their terms of use, and a local subscription is the route that will not get your account flagged.

The cheapest way to watch MLS in 2026

In order, cheapest first.

Free: an antenna and the FOX window. FOX airs 15 regular-season matches on its broadcast network, plus MLS Cup on December 18. Broadcast television is free over the air. A $30 indoor antenna and a TV tuner get you those 16 matches permanently, at zero recurring cost. FS1 is a cable channel, so the other 19 FOX Sports matches are not reachable this way.

Free: the trial, timed. Apple's seven-day free trial is for new subscribers. Time it over a weekend with a doubleheader and you have seen four or five matches for nothing. If you bought an iPhone, iPad, Mac or Apple TV recently, the three-months-free offer is the better version — redeem it within 90 days of activating the device.

$14.99: one month for the entire postseason. The 2026 playoffs run November 18 to December 18, a hair under one calendar month. A single monthly subscription covers the Wild Card round, the best-of-three first round, both conference semifinals and finals, and MLS Cup. Cancel on December 19.

$119: the full year. Across a season running February 21 to December 18, the annual plan works out to under $10 a month for 510 regular-season matches plus the playoffs. Buy annual rather than monthly if you intend to watch past March — twelve monthly payments cost $179.88.

Included: a season ticket. If you already hold a full-season ticket package with an MLS club, an Apple TV subscription is part of the 2026 package. Check with your club before paying separately.

What is not cheap is a live TV streaming service bought for MLS alone. YouTube TV, Hulu + Live TV, Fubo and DirecTV all sit between $82.99 and $89.99 a month as of September 2026, and they deliver 34 matches a season against Apple's 510.

Where to stream MLS games (every outlet, including national TV windows)

Two cautions. TelevisaUnivision's Univision, UniMás and TUDN carry Leagues Cup matches involving MLS clubs — they do not carry MLS regular-season or playoff matches. Spanish-language MLS on linear television means FOX Deportes. And 2026 is the final year of FOX Sports' current non-exclusive MLS agreement, so this table will not describe 2027.

Every match on that list, including the FOX and FS1 windows, is also on Apple TV. Nothing in MLS is exclusive to linear television.

How to watch Messi and Inter Miami

Every Inter Miami match is on Apple TV, included with the base subscription, with no blackout for anyone — including viewers in South Florida. That is the complete answer, and it is the same answer as for every other club.

Lionel Messi signed an extension in October 2025 that runs through the 2028 season, so the fixture you are looking for is not a farewell tour. He won the 2025 MLS Golden Boot with 29 goals, took back-to-back MVP awards, and Inter Miami enter 2026 as defending MLS Cup champions.

The club opened its permanent home, Nu Stadium at Miami Freedom Park, on April 4, 2026 against Austin FC, after starting the season with a run of away matches. If you want Messi on network television rather than a stream, FOX Sports scheduled two: Inter Miami against Orlando City on FS1 on May 2, and against Philadelphia Union on FOX on May 24.

Apple's Sports app sends match alerts and shows live scores free, without an Apple TV subscription — the fastest way to find a kickoff time for a specific Miami fixture.

What happens after 2026

MLS shifts to a summer-to-spring calendar in 2027, aligning with Europe. To bridge the gap, the league will play an abbreviated season from February to May 2027 — 14 matches per team, then playoffs and MLS Cup in May. The regular season in its new shape starts in mid-July 2027 and finishes in April 2028, with a winter break from mid-December through January. MLS Cup on December 18, 2026 is the last one played in December.

FOX's non-exclusive linear deal covers through the 2026 season. What replaces it has not been announced as of September 2026, so treat any 2027 linear TV claim you read as speculation until MLS confirms it.

Frequently asked questions

Can I still buy MLS Season Pass?

No. It was discontinued after the 2025 season. All MLS content moved into the standard Apple TV subscription for 2026.

How much does it cost to watch MLS in 2026?

$14.99 a month or $119 a year for Apple TV, as of the price increase on August 28, 2026. A seven-day free trial is available to new subscribers.

Are MLS games blacked out in my local market?

No. Apple and MLS both confirm there are no blackouts. Your local club's home matches stream to you like any other.

Is any MLS game on free TV?

Yes. FOX carries 15 regular-season matches and MLS Cup on its broadcast network, which an over-the-air antenna receives for free. FS1 matches require a pay-TV provider or FOX One.

Can I watch MLS in Spanish?

Yes. FOX Deportes carries all 34 FOX Sports matches and MLS Cup in Spanish, and Apple's playoff coverage includes Spanish commentary. TelevisaUnivision's channels carry Leagues Cup, not the MLS regular season.

What is the cheapest way to see the playoffs?

One $14.99 monthly Apple TV subscription. The 2026 playoffs run November 18 to December 18, which fits inside a single billing month.

Bottom line

The 2026 restructure made MLS the simplest league in American sport to follow without cable: one $119-a-year subscription, every match, no blackouts, on hardware you already own. If you only want the postseason, a single $14.99 month covers the entire playoff bracket including MLS Cup on December 18. If you want to spend nothing at all, an antenna catches 15 FOX matches and the final. Cable adds nothing here except the 19 FS1 windows, all of which are on Apple TV anyway — and the whole arrangement changes shape again when MLS moves to a summer-to-spring calendar in 2027.