Sources: MLS and Apple discussed offering Lionel Messi a revenue share generated by new Season Pass subscribers; on June 6, Apple announced a Messi docuseries
Major League Soccer and Inter Miami are solidifying details around the potential signing of Argentine superstar Lionel Messi.
Context & Ripple Effects
Apple built its way into live sports deliberately — an entry through MLB before an unusual soccer deal that made MLS the centerpiece — and put the product on shelves in February, when it launched MLS Season Pass across more than 100 territories. What was missing was a reason for casual fans outside MLS markets to subscribe.
The reported structure under discussion — MLS and Apple sharing new-subscriber revenue with Messi himself — converts a marquee signing into a customer-acquisition mechanism, while the announced docuseries adds non-match inventory around him. It matters because TV+ has almost no content built for non-English-speaking audiences, which is exactly the gap an Argentine superstar addresses.
First-order effects
- If signed on those terms, Messi's compensation rises and falls with Season Pass conversions he drives personally, making Inter Miami's roster decision simultaneously Apple's growth lever.
Second-order effects
- A measurable signup spike would shore up the ad business Apple built alongside the pass — packages shopped at up to roughly $4M per season with no viewership guarantees — by giving advertisers evidence the audience shows up.
- The deal targets the international gap in TV+ catalog, pressuring rival streamers competing for Spanish-language and global soccer audiences.
Third-order effects
- Star athletes start being priced like distribution partners — paid per subscriber they convert — rather than as league employees, pushing sports media deals toward individual revenue-share riders layered onto team and league rights.
The trend: Sports streaming deals are evolving from flat rights fees toward structures where the biggest stars share directly in the subscription revenue their presence generates.