Major League Soccer has announced it will explore a potential shift to the international soccer calendar as early as 2027, along with possible changes to the regular season and playoff formats.
According to a league statement released Thursday, the MLS Board of Governors has \"authorized a second phase of exploration into a potential move to the international soccer calendar, along with a continued evaluation of the league\'s regular season and playoff formats.\"
The potential transition would align MLS with most global leagues that operate on a fall-to-spring schedule, rather than the current winter-to-fall format where the 2025 season began in February and will conclude in October before playoffs.
MLS Commissioner Don Garber previously mentioned in December that the league had considered calendar changes in 2004-05 and 2014-15, noting there is now \"more momentum around a possible change\" than in previous discussions.
\"I do think that we are considering more than ever before this opportunity to change, but it\'s not something that we\'re ready to talk about right now,\" Garber said. \"The schedule does get more crowded. The summers, in particular June now, that has been taken up by most of the international tournaments. [It] has us digging in even deeper than we ever had in the past, but we\'ve got a lot of work to do and that work is ongoing.\"
Aligning with the international calendar could enhance MLS\'s position in the global transfer market, which centers around major moves during the summer—currently the midpoint of the MLS season. However, weather concerns in cold-climate North American cities remain a significant consideration against the proposed change.
One element common in other domestic leagues globally is promotion and relegation, which the MLS is not expected to consider as the league is setup on a franchise model.