Lionel Messi’s arrival to Major League Soccer is unique in all aspects, from the playing side and the business side as well. Messi signed a two-and-a-half-year contract worth between $50 – $60 million a season plus incentives and percentages that come from Apple TV and Adidas.
Messi is slated to make a percentage of jersey sales from Inter Miami, and at the moment the Inter Miami kit is one of the most sought-after kits in the world, as the club has up to a six-month order request. For Apple TV, Messi is also gaining a percentage of new subscribers and that is unprecedented.
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MLS signed a unique 10-year- deal where Apple TV is the sole carrier of the league with worldwide distribution rights. While initially many pundits were skeptical of a subscription package for MLS, according to various sources from Apple TV, the deal has been seen as a success as MLS has hit various metrics. Now with Lionel Messi, as expected the package has seen a hike in subscribers.
Lionel Messi jumps MLS League Pass subscribers
According to MKTRegistrado upon the announcement of Messi to Inter Miami, subscriptions have increased by 300,000 new subscribers worldwide. Now according to various sources within Apple TV, MLS League Pass has hit 1,000,000 subscribers worldwide.
Messi has already begun to promote the subscription service on his social media accounts and MLS hopes an influx of new stars can also help raise the subscription rate. Whether this will mean a long-term interest in MLS remains to be seen, the league has given League Pass for free to their 420,000 season ticket holders, and the streaming service is available for T-Mobile users and LG Smart TV owners for free in the United States.
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Nonetheless hitting a million subscribers whether paid or not is still a positive number, as worldwide subscriptions for the package will most likely be all paid. Messi has a huge following in countries like India and Bangladesh.
