MLS scores new Japanese partner, expands Le Sports contract

North America’s Major League Soccer has agreed a two-season rights deal with Japanese commercial broadcaster Fuji TV and has expanded its existing partnership with Le Sports, which is operated by Chinese internet company LeEco.

The deal with Fuji TV will include broadcast of two MLS regular-season matches per week, select 2016 MLS Cup Playoff games and MLS Cup matches during the 2016 and 2017 seasons. MLS retains the rights to digital live games and news clips packages in Japan.

Four Japanese players currently compete in MLS in the shape of Vancouver Whitecaps’ Masato Kudo, Toronto FC’s Tsubasa Endoh, New England Revolution’s Japanese-Haitian player Zachary Herivaux and his team-mate Daigo Kobayashi (pictured).

The Le Sports and MLS digital partnership, first announced in 2015, has been expanded to include multiple live MLS regular-season matches per week, along with the All-Star Game, the 2016 MLS Cup Playoff games and MLS Cup. Le Sports will continue to carry highlights, player features and other MLS content across its digital platforms.

Gary Stevenson, president and managing director of MLS Business Ventures, said: “We are very focused on broadening our reach in the Asian market and the Le Sport and Fuji deals announced today are a big part of that growth.”