''MLS on TSN'' is the branding used for

TSN TSN may refer to: Science and technology * Translin, DNA binding protein involved in microRNA function * Taxonomic serial number, a stable and unique taxonomic serial number issued by the Integrated Taxonomic Information System * The Science Netwo ...

's telecasts of

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada ...

matches. TSN first acquired rights to MLS in 2011.

History

In February 2011,

CTVglobemedia Bell Media Inc. ( French: ) is a Canadian company formed by the amalgamation of several companies. Establishment (2011–13) On December 9, 2011, the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan announced the sale of its majority stake in Maple Leaf Sports ...

announced a six-year deal for national MLS broadcast rights in Canada. TSN and

TSN2 TSN2 is a Canadian English language sports specialty channel that acts as the secondary feed of sports-centred channel The Sports Network (TSN) and owned by CTV Specialty Television Inc. It was launched in its current form on August 29, 2008. F ...

would broadcast 24 matches during the 2011 season and air a minimum of 30 matches per season during the subsequent five seasons, all featuring at least one Canadian team. French-language sister networks RDS and

RDS2 RDS2 is a Canadian French language sports specialty channel, acting as the secondary feed of French language television network Réseau des sports, owned by CTV Specialty Television Inc. The channel was launched on October 7, 2011, to coincide wit ...

had similar broadcast rights. The networks also carried the

MLS Cup The MLS Cup is the annual championship game of Major League Soccer (MLS) and the culmination of the MLS Cup Playoffs. The game is held in November and pits the winner of the Eastern Conference Final against the winner of the Western Conference ...

and select playoff matches, the

MLS All-Star Game The Major League Soccer All-Star Game is an annual soccer game held by Major League Soccer featuring selected players from the league against an international club or selected players from Liga MX. MLS initially adopted a traditional all-star ga ...

, and additional matches not involving Canadian teams. GolTV continued to carry selected all-U.S. MLS matches.

Toronto FC Toronto Football Club (commonly known as Toronto FC or TFC) is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Toronto. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home matches at BMO ...

regional matches were split between TSN and the

Sportsnet Sportsnet is a Canadian English-language sports specialty channel owned by Rogers Sports & Media. It was established in 1998 as CTV Sportsnet, a joint venture between CTV, Liberty Media, and Rogers Media. CTV parent Bell Globemedia then ...

networks (their parent companies,

Rogers Communications Rogers Communications Inc. is a Telecommunications in Canada, Canadian communications and media company operating primarily in the fields of mobile phone operator, wireless communications, cable television, telephony and Internet access, Intern ...

and

Bell Canada Bell Canada (commonly referred to as Bell) is a Canadian telecommunications company headquartered at 1 Carrefour Alexander-Graham-Bell in the borough of Verdun in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is an ILEC (incumbent local exchange carrier) in t ...

, jointly own a stake in TFC's parent company

Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment Ltd. (MLSE) is a professional sports and commercial real estate company based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. With assets that include franchises in four of the six major professional sports leagues in the United S ...

). In 2014, TSN acquired rights to

Vancouver Whitecaps FC Vancouver Whitecaps Football Club is a Canadian professional soccer team based in Vancouver. They compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The MLS iteration of the club was established on Marc ...

regional matches. In 2017,

Bell Media Bell Media Inc. ( French: ) is a Canadian company formed by the amalgamation of several companies. Establishment (2011–13) On December 9, 2011, the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan announced the sale of its majority stake in Maple Leaf Sports ...

reached a five-year extension to its English-language rights to Major League Soccer, with coverage remaining similar to previous seasons (though with French-language rights moving to rival network

TVA Sports TVA Sports is a Canadian French-language sports specialty channel owned by the Groupe TVA, a publicly traded subsidiary of Quebecor Media. The channel is a general-interest sports network, and the first major competitor to RDS, the only other Fre ...

, and the option for matches to be simulcast on broadcast network CTV). TSN also assumed exclusive rights to Toronto FC. On December 15, 2021, MLS announced that it would be continuing with the same Canadian broadcasters for 2022. TSN will broadcast all Toronto FC and Vancouver Whitecaps games while TVA Sports will cover

CF Montréal CF Montréal is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Montréal, Québec, Canada. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) in the Eastern Conference. Founded in 1992 as the Montreal Impact (french: Impact de Montréal, links=no), ...

in French. TSN will also broadcast select additional matches and CTV will show eight MLS games. TSN acquired national rights to select MLS games for the 2023–2026 seasons. TSN will broadcast at least one match per week featuring a Canadian team, eight playoff matches, and the MLS Cup Final. Matches aired on TSN are non-exclusive and will also be available in Canada on

MLS Season Pass MLS Season Pass is a soccer streaming television, streaming service operated by Apple Inc. which will include live matches from Major League Soccer. The service will be available in over 100 countries at launch and will feature every MLS regular s ...

Commentators

*Luke Wileman (host and play-by-play) *Kristian Jack (host and TSN soccer analyst) * Steven Caldwell (TSN soccer analyst) *

Terry Dunfield Terence Dunfield (born February 20, 1982) is a Canadian former soccer player, coach and pundit who is head coach of Toronto FC's under-17s team, as well as soccer analyst for TSN and colour commentator for OneSoccer. As a player he was a midfi ...

(TSN soccer analyst) *

Gareth Wheeler Gareth Wheeler is a Canadian sports broadcaster and radio host for The Sports Network (TSN) and TSN 1050 Radio, based in Toronto, Ontario. He currently serves as the radio voice of Toronto FC on TSN 1050 for games involving TFC on the TSN family o ...

(TSN soccer radio host) *

Blake Price Blake Price (born December 15, 1974) is a Canadian sportscaster. He is most recently an anchor on TSN's SportsCentre and a co-host of the most popular sports radio show in Vancouver, "Sekeres and Price Show" on TSN Radio 1040 alongside colleagu ...

(play-by-play) * Paul Dolan (TSN soccer analyst) *Joey Alfieri (play-by-play) *

Vic Rauter Victor "Vic" Rauter (born 1955) is a Canadian sportscaster for TSN, having joined the network in 1985. Rauter has anchored TSN's curling coverage for more than 25 years, providing play-by-play curling commentary for the Season of Champions on ...

(play-by-play) * Greg Sutton (TSN soccer analyst)

History

Commentators

References

See also