FC Cincinnati heads into this season after their best year as a Major League Soccer club. Their rise comes at an interesting moment for MLS. Which is entering a season full of changes.

There are many reasons for FC Cincinnati fans to be excited about this year. After languishing through their first three MLS campaigns. FC Cincinnati advanced to their first MLS Cup Playoffs appearance last year. Along with having representatives at the MLS All-Star Game for the first time. The core of FC Cincinnati’s roster from last year is still with the club. After going through a revolving door of coaches in recent years. Head coach Pat Noonan is bringing some stability to the club.

This week presented another reason for FC Cincinnati to feel optimistic about their playoff hopes. Major League Soccer announced plans to expand their playoffs on Tuesday. Starting this year, the MLS Cup Playoffs will have nine teams per conference qualify. Instead of the seven teams per conference format that was used last year. In the new format, the top seven teams in each conference will automatically advance to a best-of-three quarterfinal series. The eighth and ninth seeded teams will face each other in a single-elimination wild card game. The conference semifinals, finals and MLS Cup Final will be single elimination games.

Had the new format been in place last year. FC Cincinnati would’ve hosted a playoff game as the Eastern Conference’s fifth seed. The new playoff format isn’t the only change coming to MLS this season. St. Louis City SC will debut this weekend as MLS’ latest expansion franchise. Expanding the number of teams in the league to 29.

This season’s most significant change will be the way MLS matches can be seen. MLS is launching a new streaming partnership with Apple TV+. In a first of its kind deal for a major professional league. Apple TV+ will stream all MLS regular season matches. In a ten-year deal that was announced in the middle of last season.

This will significantly alter the way FC Cincinnati fans watch matches. Compared to what fans had been used throughout FCC’s history. Since the franchise’s inaugural season in 2016. When the team was in the United Soccer League. FC Cincinnati fans have been accustomed to watching most of their matches on broadcast TV. Primarily through their partnership with WSTR-TV (64). That partnership along with the regional TV partnerships MLS clubs had last year are gone now.

This deal comes as major leagues continue to pursue streaming media. 2022 was a landmark year for American sports’ relationship with streaming platforms. Last year, a few Cincinnati Reds games were streamed by Peacock and Apple TV+. The NFL’s Thursday Night Football games now stream exclusively on Amazon Prime Video. Meanwhile, many local college events have been exclusively streamed on ESPN+ for several years.

Major League Soccer’s deal with Apple carries some risks. The league is limiting its presence on broadcast TV. Which is more widely accessible than streaming media. Major League Soccer doesn’t have the prominence that the English Premier League and NFL have. Putting most matches behind a paywall could lead the league into irrelevance. On the plus side for MLS, Apple is one of the world’s most profitable companies. Connecting with Apple’s massive legacy brand could boost Major League Soccer’s prominence.

FC Cincinnati’s success could also help Apple and MLS. FC Cincinnati’s success last year came as welcome relief for Cincinnati sports fans. Since the club was winning while the Cincinnati Reds stumbled their way through a 100-loss season. Few expect the Reds to be contenders this year but hope springs eternal. Meanwhile, FC Cincinnati is striving to build on last year’s achievements and contend again this year. The excitement surrounding FCC could attract many fans to the Apple TV+ broadcasts. People that might not otherwise subscribe to Apple TV+.

Some regular season MLS matches will still air on broadcast and cable TV. FOX and their cable sports outlet FS1 will air 34 matches this year. FC Cincinnati’s “Hell is Real” Derby match at the Columbus Crew on August 20th will air on FS1. That’s currently the only FCC game set to be televised anywhere other than Apple TV+. Meanwhile, FC Cincinnati games will still be broadcast for free on local radio.

The club is maintaining their radio partnership with iHeartMedia’s Cincinnati stations. Saturday’s season opener against the Houston Dynamo can be heard on WSAI-AM (1360). Fans will still hear play-by-play announcer Tom Gelehrter. Along with analyst Kevin McCloskey on the radio call. Both of whom have called FCC games since 2016. Prior to this year, their radio broadcast was typically a simulcast of their local TV broadcast.

So, FCC will have continuity in their local broadcasting booth. Along with their roster and coaching staff. While the league they play in navigates through various changes.