All of Atlanta United games in its inaugural 2017 season will be broadcast on television or online, team president Darren Eales said Tuesday.
Eales said that there has been “lots of local interest” in partnering to broadcast the games.
“Now it’s time to work out the best one for MLS, Atlanta United and the local market,” he said.
MLS requires its teams to broadcast all games that aren’t picked up by one of the league’s national partners. It is required because of MLS Live, a subscription-based service that allows viewers to watch games on their phones, tablets, computers or other streaming devices. MLS also offers MLS Direct Kick, a cable and satellite package for out-of-market games. MLS also has an app that streams games.
Eales anticipates that Atlanta United will be featured on some national broadcasts, citing the fact that expansion teams New York City FC and Orlando SC appeared 30 times during the recently completed 2015 season on Fox Sports 1, Fox Deportes, ESPN2, ESPN Deportes, Unimas or Univision Deportes. Philly.com published a list of all the games.
The league's broadcast deal, which started for the 2015 season and run for eight years, includes a Friday night game on UniMas and/or Univision Deportes. On Sundays, ESPN broadcasts a game at 5 p.m. and Fox Sports 1 broadcasts another at 7 p.m. National games are also streamed on WatchESPN.
