There’s no denying the seemingly unstoppable momentum of Major League Soccer, as evidenced by the fact that brands spent a record $461M in sponsorships across MLS clubs this year. Let’s take a look at three reasons behind this new benchmark.

The number of brands sponsoring MLS increased by roughly 25% in the last three years.A few factors fueled MLS sponsorships’ growth, starting with the addition of six league-level sponsors this year: Avant, IHG, Socios, Sorare, Doordash, and Caterpillar. Meanwhile, the Alcohol, Media and Technology categories added the most brands during the 2022 season.

Digital assets grew within MLS venues.Digital advertising in MLS increased more than 18% in 2022 across 13 different digital asset classes. The video board reigned supreme, as more than 500 brands utilized it this season—a 20% rise over last year.

adidas and Continental Tire remained the most active brands–followed by Socios.com, which aims to become MLS’ next long-term partner.adidas, the league’s longest tenured partner at 26 years, and 12-year partner Continental Tire both have sponsorships with every MLS team. A newcomer this season, fan engagement platform Socios.com became both an official MLS partner and Official Fan Loyalty Partner of 26 MLS clubs–signaling its serious long-term sponsorship plans within the league.