Lionel Messi of Inter Miami CF takes a corner kick during a match against Los Angeles Football Club at Chase Stadium on April 09, 2025 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. (Photo by Rich Storry/Getty Images)
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The first chairman of Major League Soccer, Alan Rothenberg, has called the planned MLS calendar change “inevitable.”
And another thing he says is “inevitable” is promotion-relegation.
Rothenberg was US Soccer Federation president in the 1990s and oversaw the 1994 World Cup and creation of Major League Soccer. He was MLS chairman from 1993 to 1998.
Speaking ahead of the release of his book The Big Bounce, he said of the league schedule and promotion and relegation, that “My line in there… was ‘it’s as inevitable as tomorrow, but not quite so imminent.’ And maybe now it is so imminent.”
Major League Soccer Calendar Changes
Major League Soccer last week announced that it would switch from its current spring-fall season to a fall-spring season by 2027 to align with top leagues around the world. This would see the end-of-season playoffs take place in May, but there would also likely be a winter break with no games scheduled for January.
Alan Rothenberg was US Soccer Federation president from 1990-1998 and chairman & CEO of World Cup USA ’94, and MLS chairman from 1993-1998. (Photo by Eva Marie Uzcategui/Getty Images)
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Rothenberg said when the league was founded, there were only ten teams so it was hard to balance the schedule to avoid matches in colder regions during the winter, but now with 30 teams spread across the country, it is easier to create a schedule that works. He also says the current spring-fall calendar means MLS doesn’t go head-to-head against American football, but now “we’re strong enough to take the fight on more even grounds.”
Promotion And Relegation in MLS
When it comes to introducing promotion and relegation to MLS, Rothenberg says this is also inevitable, but “is further down the road because right now you don’t have really a strong second division level of soccer in this country,” adding that the gap between MLS and United Soccer League is too large.
He says that for now, talk of promotion and relegation is “premature” and that investors might not have much of an appetite for it, but “the excitement [of having promotion and relegation battles] probably outweighs anything else.”
Major League Soccer’s growth could be given a huge boost by the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
2026 World Cup Could Boost MLS
Rothenberg says the World Cup could provide a huge financial boost to MLS, which could allow the league to sign more stars in their prime like Son Heung-min and pay them a competitive wage. He says “The interesting thing about Son is he’s younger. I mean, he’s still now in his 30s, but he’s not 37, he’s like 32, still really at the prime of his career,” unlike some other players whose spells in MLS were “somewhat of a holiday for them.”
Son and Lionel Messi on the other hand “have been willing to help the league from a promotional standpoint. You know, at the drop of the hat, they’ll give it in, they’ll go to an event, and that’s really crucial.”
He says for MLS investors, there’s currently a bit of a chicken and egg situation where if the league could bring in more players like Lionel Messi or Son Heung-min, it would give a huge boost to TV revenues, but signing players in the prime of their careers is extraordinarily expensive and represents a gamble that those players will lead to higher revenues later on.
But the 2026 World Cup could help MLS make that leap to a higher level if the World Cup is so successful in the eyes of the world and the eyes of the media that it brings a huge financial boost to MLS.
World Cup Risks And Rewards
Of the World Cup itself, Rothenberg says that in 1994, the US Soccer Federation was responsible for the whole running of the tournament so it had all the risk, but also all the reward. But for 2026, FIFA is effectively the organizer and has done deals directly with the host cities, so compared to 1994, it is more difficult for host cities to generate revenues from things like sponsorship. As a result, some cities like Chicago thought the terms weren’t worth it.
But he says that for many cities, the impact on tourism and the general community will mean that those cities will on balance see the tournament as successful, and that overall, the 2026 World Cup will be an “overwhelming success.”