Major League Soccer owners voted Thursday to shift the league's season to a summer-to-spring calendar in 2027, bringing it closer to being in line with its international counterparts. The move aims to put MLS in a more competitive position for player transfers while also freeing up players for national team duty during the summer, when many major international tournaments take place. This season, the league started play in late February, with a break for the Club World Cup over the summer, the AP reports. The MLS Cup championship game is scheduled for Dec. 6.
The vote came at the Board of Governors meeting in Palm Beach, Florida. Under the new calendar, league play will begin in mid- to late July 2027, with the final day of the regular season in April 2028. The playoffs and championship will take place in May. The league would go on an extended break during the winter, with just a few games played in early December and no games in January before resuming in early to mid-February. The league is working with the Major League Soccer Players Association to finalize the transition.
The move is "one of the most important decisions in our league's history," Commissioner Don Garber told reporters on a conference call Thursday, adding that it "gives us a wide variety of opportunities that will expand our ability to be on this path to be one of the top and leading leagues in the world." There were concerns about weather during the winter months. But with a warming climate, matches in the summer months have become problematic, too. Soaring temperatures were a concern at some of the Club World Cup matches this past July and August. The current schedule was partly based on the tastes of American sports fans, avoiding the crowded months when NFL plays its biggest games, and the NBA and NHL are in full swing.
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