NEW YORK and TAMPA, Fla. – The United Soccer League (USL) and global sports marketing agency SPORTFIvE has reached a new, long-term, broad partnership to help the league grow its business around the world.
Under the agreement, SPORTFIvE will continue to secure key international media distribution partnerships across television and digital platforms for the USL’s professional leagues, including the USL Championship and USL League One competitions in men and the USL’s new professional women’s competition, the USL Super League, which will launch in August 2024. SPORTFIvE will also help expand USL’s sports betting streaming and data partnerships around the world.
SPORTSvE and USL originally partnered in early 2020 when the agency was tasked with marketing international broadcast rights for the USL Championship and USL League.
“The USL soccer brand has arrived, and we are proud to expand our partnership with SPORTFIvAnd to take that brand to the world,” said USL Chief Commercial Officer Court Jeske. “This long-term agreement allows us to be very intentional about our global growth and exposure while doing so with a partner we know and trust.”
“American Soccer continues to make an impact on the global sports scene, so we are proud to partner with the USL to bring more of their exciting content to more international markets,” said Thomas Klingebiel, President Media of SPORTFIvE. “Fans are more interested in consuming the games they love to play anywhere in the world, and helping the USL reach more international fans by expanding content distribution and sports betting partnerships around the world is an exciting opportunity.”
By 2023, the USL Championship (24 clubs) and USL League One (12 clubs) will play a combined 620 professional soccer matches in the United States. The Championship’s 34-game regular season runs from March 11 to October 14, followed by the playoffs and the Final scheduled for Nov. 12. In League One, each club will play 32 games between March 17 and October 14 with the next playoffs ending in the Final on Nov. 5.
SPORTSvE has an experienced and strong international workforce that provides state-of-the-art services to sports rights holders around the world. The agency manages the rights and delivers premium events in more than 30 different sports, some of which include Atletico Madrid, Borussia Dortmund, Boston Athletic Association (Boston Marathon), Bundesliga, English Football Association (FA) , English Premier League, Flamengo, Kansas City Chiefs, Los Angeles Dodgers, Los Angeles Lakers, LPGA, New York Jets, and PGA TOUR, among others. Generally, SPORTFIvE generates over $1 billion in gross sales annually, for its valued rights holder clients.
