In some ways, MLS is already up there with the major leagues around the world.
There were 45 MLS players represented at the 2026 World Cup – including Argentina’s final duo, Messi and Rodrigo de Paul.
MLS has a reputation for being almost a retirement home for superstars – a lucrative place to play for legends like Beckham and Messi after peak careers in Europe.
But that reputation is outdated, Courtemanche said, with the average age of young international players in the league now 23.8 years. Although many of them have dreams of playing in Europe after facing MLS.
MLS is changing its calendar in 2027 to accommodate a summer to spring season, more closely aligned with Europe to make it easier for players to move between leagues.
And the leaders of this competition invest their money in organizations that develop the youth.
All MLS teams run youth centers. As the LA Galaxy hosted the US’s victory over Bosnia-Herzegovina on the big screen, dozens of kids ignored the game, instead battling it out on their own in three different arenas, occasionally running to the big screen when the sound of a goal spread through the crowd.
These were rare games to pick up a culture full of organized kids – and the skill level was high. Some of the kids were playing for MLS youth teams.
Eight-year-old Landon – named after American star Landon Donovan – was one of the best, moving from goalkeeper to forward with gusto. His mother, Jen Wing, is a coach and says her children have attended MLS camps and played on tour teams in their home in New Jersey.
Landon dreams of becoming a professional soccer player one day in the MLS.
“LAFC,” he says, referring to his dream team.
But critics say MLS will never compete in Europe until it fixes its “pay-to-play” culture of youth development.
At the top level, MLS schools train and develop young players for free, just like their European counterparts.
But to get to that level, where an MLS academy team can see a young player, families often pay thousands of dollars for private lessons and access to travel teams, a common theme in US sports.
MLS officials say the development leagues are always evolving and improving when it comes to developing young talent, and that each team has scholarships available for talented players.
Commissioner Garber says the league is always improving and is determined to do even better in developing young players so they can bring “more and more to the men’s national team and become better, bigger, stronger, faster, all those things that give you the power to think about a better future”.
When it comes to attracting the audience, Messi is the one who struggles in the league.
But the cult of celebrity runs throughout the league. More than a dozen entertainers and athletes own MLS clubs, including Will Ferrell (LAFC), Reese Witherspoon (Nashville SC), Matthew McConaughey (Austin FC) and Magic Johnson (LAFC).
And it’s a profitable business.
Drew Carey was the original owner of the Seattle Sounders when the club joined MLS in 2009 with a $30m (£22m) expansion fee. The Sounders are now worth more than $900m (£668m). David Beckham’s 2007 LA Galaxy contract included an option to buy an MLS expansion team for $25m. He now owns Inter Miami CF, a professional club worth over a billion dollars.
