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Mar 19, 2019

Major League Soccer bounces back

As Major League Soccer’s 24th season gets underway, sports investors are fueling a soccer growth spurt.

by Rickey Bevington
FC Cincinnati fans are seen during the match against the Portland Timbers at Nippert Stadium on March 17, 2019 in Cincinnati, Ohio. FC Cincinnati won its inaugural home match 3-0.
FC Cincinnati fans are seen during the match against the Portland Timbers at Nippert Stadium on March 17, 2019 in Cincinnati, Ohio. FC Cincinnati won its inaugural home match 3-0.
Joe Robbins/Getty Images

As Major League Soccer’s 24th season gets underway, sports investors are fueling a soccer growth spurt. Cincinnati has a new team this year, and Nashville, Miami and Austin will launch MLS franchises by 2021. According to a 2018 Gallup poll, soccer is now a more popular sport to watch among 18 to 54-year-olds than baseball. That’s a long way from 2001, when MLS was considering bankruptcy. 

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