Lionel Messi Takes MLS to New Heights With Record Attendance and Sponsorship Figures

By Mohd Faisal Hakak On Oct 23, 2024

MLS has achieved several regular season milestones, including record attendance and sponsorship figures, significantly influenced by international star Lionel Messi and strategic corporate initiatives. The league has attracted high-profile athletes like Messi and Luis Suárez, capitalizing on the increasing popularity of soccer in the United States to strengthen its fan base after nearly three decades.

The strategy appears effective, as nearly 11.5 million fans attended MLS matches during the recently concluded regular season, marking the highest attendance in league history. This figure represents a 5% increase from last year and a 14% rise compared to 2022. On average, each match during the 2024 season attracted 23,234 spectators, the highest average recorded for any regular season.

Two matches attracted over 70,000 fans, while five others surpassed the 50,000 mark. Notably, an April encounter at Arrowhead Stadium saw 72,610 spectators come to witness Lionel Messi and Inter Miami face Sporting Kansas City.

The league achieved a record average attendance of 23,234 per match, with ten teams setting or breaking their own attendance records and a total of 213 sellouts across the season. Even without considering Messi’s away games, the average attendance would still represent a record for MLS. As the playoffs commence this week, MLS anticipates that nearly 12 million fans will have attended games throughout the season.

If you, like me, were curious about how much of @MLS's record attendance is attributable to Leo Messi, @LevAkabas crunched the numbers.

The 2024 season was still an MLS record even without Messi's road games.

More: https://t.co/ojScLEDWDN pic.twitter.com/3PVQ4QA414

— Eben Novy-Williams (@novy_williams) October 22, 2024

There’s no denying that Messi is the league’s main attraction, emerging as the frontrunner for the MVP award this season. The eight-time Ballon d’Or recipient has achieved an impressive tally of 20 goals and 10 assists across just 19 matches. The Ferons secured the Supporters Shield, posting the best regular-season record with 74 points, surpassing the previous record set by New England in 2021 by a single point.

“He’s definitely helped put us in front of a global audience, and he’s definitely piqued the interest of sports fans in our country,” said Chris McGowan, head of the club performance and optimization group at MLS. “Our clubs have done an unbelievable job of taking advantage of that and understanding that players don’t play forever. We have the best ever playing in our league, so we got to be on our toes to be able to take advantage of it.”

This season, the league welcomed 18 new sponsorship partners through Major League Soccer and Soccer United Marketing (SUM), its commercial arm. Year-to-date, both league and SUM sponsorship revenue increased by 13%, matching the rise in club-level sponsorship revenue during the same timeframe, leading to record-breaking figures at both levels.

Additionally, Messi’s Inter Miami jersey remained the top-selling jersey in the league and achieved the highest global sales for Adidas among individual player jerseys, underscoring the Argentine superstar’s immense popularity and impact on the league.

Mohd Faisal Hakak

Mohd Faisal Hakak is a sports author from Kashmir. He likes to keep tabs on the sporting world with a keen interest in football, motorsports, NBA, and other marquee sports. He is a science graduate from Islamia College Srinagar.