ESPN’s coverage of Major League Soccer’s 21st season will begin Sunday, March 6, at 4:30pm. ET, with a rematch of the 2015 MLS Cup when league champion Portland Timbers host Columbus Crew SC on ESPN, ESPN Deportes and WatchESPN at Providence Park. The match will feature Darlington Nagbe, U.S. Men’s National Team midfielder, leading the 2015 MLS Cup Champions against 2015 MVP runner-up Kei Kamara and the Crew.
2016 MLS on ESPN highlights:
· Appointment viewing: 29 of the 33 MLS on ESPN telecast windows are on Sunday afternoon, establishing a consistent programming window for the league on ESPN;
· The 33 regular-season matches will air on ESPN (28) or ESPN2 (5) and ESPN Deportes, the Spanish-language sports network. All matches will be streamed live on WatchESPN and in Spanish on ESPN Deportes+;
· Up to 17 MLS telecasts on ESPN networks will feature expanded programming windows for pre- and post-game segments;
· 30 of the 32 scheduled matches involve at least one 2015 MLS Cup playoff team;
· MLS Cup champion Portland Timbers, which led the league with six regular-season appearances last year, returns with an MLS-best eight matches on ESPN this year. Two teams – Los Angeles Galaxy and Seattle Sounders FC – have seven matches each on ESPN networks; and New York City FC and Sporting Kansas City will each have six matches on ESPN;
· Five MLS matches will air on UEFA European Football Championship 2016 match days – Sporting Kansas City vs. FC Dallas (June 19), Seattle Sounders FC vs. New York City FC (June 25), Portland Timbers vs. Houston Dynamo (June 26), New York City FC vs. New York Red Bulls (July 3) and New York Red Bulls vs. Portland Timbers on July 10, day of the UEFA EURO 2016 title match;
· MLS Rivalry Week: Cascadia Cup matchup, Portland Timbers vs. Vancouver Whitecaps FC, on Sunday, May 22, and an MLS doubleheader Sunday, Aug. 28 – New York Red Bulls vs. New England Revolution and Portland Timbers vs. Seattle Sounders FC – on ESPN.
ESPN’s 2016 MLS Schedule:
