Even before the arrival of Lionel Messi, Apple TV has been committed to Major League Soccer. It should be committed to all things MLS teams do, like compete in the nation’s oldest soccer tournament, the U.S. Open Cup. | Kareem Elgazzar/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK
Couldn’t the streaming giant end the feud between MLS and the U.S. Open Cup by simply locking up broadcast rights?
Hey, will the soccer-loving Apple TV please stand up?
We’re talking about the one that joined arms with Major League Soccer in the arms race to get Lionel Messi over to Major League Soccer. Let’s be honest, the world’s greatest player wasn’t ready to sell his soul to Saudi-backed millions (billions?), but he wasn’t coming to Inter Miami for free either.
The deal spawned not just renewed interest in the League from casual fans but also diehards (MLS will refer to them as “niche audiences”) with sign-ups to the streaming service in addition to the spawn of an entirely new tournament, the MLS vs. Mexico draw of Leagues Cup, which was a success before Messi arrived, but exploded as he guided Inter to the inaugural title.
Kareem Elgazzar/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK
Inter Miami forward Lionel Messi (10) takes a free kick in the second period of extra time during a U.S. Open Cup semifinal match between Inter Miami and FC Cincinnati last August.
That’s well and all, but there’s been this 100-plus year soccer tournament in the United States that has never gotten the same level of notoriety, and if it has the ovations have been brief.
The Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, which pits the best amateur and professional clubs together for a winner-take-all tournament has been around since 1913 but still finds it hard to consistently find a home that’s easy to watch. MLS teams join the tournament midway through it after the cream of amateur and lower division professional clubs have risen to the top.
It’s essentially the American version of England’s FA Cup, which is prominently displayed in Britain by the BBC and ITV Sport. Here in the States you don’t have to go searching too hard to find a televised FA Cup match whether you’re in California or the Carolinas.
So why isn’t that the case for the U.S. Open Cup? Revenue really. It’s not sexy to watch the Pittsburgh Riverhounds take on the Portland Timbers.
But it could be if someone cared enough.
Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports
Houston Dynamo goalkeeper Andrew Tarbell (13) holds up the trophy after winning the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup final against Inter Miami in September.
You know what else wasn’t sexy? MLS clubs taking on mid-table Liga MX teams, but if you wanted to it was there at the ready during Leagues Cup. If Apple truly purports to be behind MLS and not just the dollars generated everytime they host an Inter Miami match, then join the group looking to bid on U.S. Open Cup broadcast rights.
Is that so crazy? What are we missing? Niche tournament, broadcasted to a niche fanbase. Apple TV could even bargain to only host the MLS matches and serve those games to respective markets as added bonus. It’ll get watched. First by the diehards and then by the casuals.
MLS has already fought to get its top clubs out of contention and let its lower-level affiliates battle for the title. Which is criminal, since that’s a death knell for the Open Cup. I tell you people aren’t watching is a lower-level club take on the lower-level players of a top-level club. We know that, and shame on MLS for passing on the fact that they don’t know that.
Apple TV could easily play the middle man in this situation and consider bringing Open Cup into the fold. They probably won’t, but imagine the possibilities if it did, in an effort to establish themselves as the authority on professional soccer in America, and not just the vessel for a tournament conceived inside an MLS board room. It’s not like the streaming service publicly releases
Or hell, do both. Still a win-win.
