Minutes from the Committee Meeting

August 7, 2026 — Committee Meeting # 50

Agenda Items 📋:

• The FIFA drama continued this week, with President Infantino calling an emergency caucus in Morocco. He is rumored to have offered the World Cup Final in 2030 to Morocco as part of an attempt to save his job.
• Notably, the most discussed potential “Unity Candidate” to replace Infantino is Concacaf president, Canadian Victor Montagliani.
• U.S. Soccer backed the unanimous Concacaf statement that ruled out voting for Infantino’s scheme to sell a minority share of the World Cup to private equity, but CEO J.T. Batson has declined to state whether U.S. Soccer supports Infantino’s ongoing presidency. 
• Succession for MLS is set, however, with LAFC co-Managing Owner Larry Berg named as the next Commissioner of MLS.
• Larry Berg will be only the third MLS commissioner ever, and notably the first with deep ties to the sport. More on that in our Story of the Week. 
• On the transfer front, the big outbound story (courtesy Soccerwise’s Tom Bogert) is Real Salt Lake’s Zavier Gozo finalizing a $15m+ deal to Crystal Palace.
• Within MLS? Tommy Scoops has you covered with the surprise move of Chucky Lozano to the L.A. Galaxy on loan, (temporarily) ending his dramatic stint at San Diego, where he has been separated from the team for the entirety of 2026.
• Leagues Cup kicked off this week, and we’ve noted the Orlando City 2-1 win over Monterrey and the Seattle Sounders 3-0 defeat of Toluca as two bellwethers amongst shifting MLS stories.
• U.S. Soccer announced its slate of four USMNT friendlies for the combined September and October window. Pochettino’s side will kick-off the new cycle playing Peru, Chile, Mexico, and Canada in Orlando, St. Louis, Phoenix, and Minneapolis, respectively.
• USWNT fullback Jenna Nighswonger returned to NWSL this week, with Bay FC completing a deal with Arsenal for her transfer. Nighswonger was most recently on loan at Aston Villa.
• The big news from WAFCON was the battle of two of NWSL’s best. Malawi and Temwa Chawinga eliminated Barbra Banda and Zambia from WAFCON, and thereby the World Cup. Malawi is looking to make their first ever World Cup.

Story of the Week:

LAFC co-owner and co-Managing Partner Larry Berg was announced as the next MLS Commissioner on Monday, setting up Don Garber’s successor.

Garber has been Commissioner for an astounding 27 years. He oversaw nearly the entirety of the league’s history and growth, and importantly succeeded in saving the league from its momentary demise twenty-five years ago.

Berg takes over an entirely different entity, at perhaps its most crucial moment in decades. We’ll provide a quick overview of the top items on Berg’s to-do list to successfully usher in the new era of Major League Soccer:

• Updated Roster Rules: We relayed Tom Bogert’s report on the MLS Board of Governors being presented updated roster rules by the Product Strategy Committee (a committee chaired by Larry Berg.)MLS 2.0 introduced the Designated Player rule, a mechanism allowing the club to sign and retain big stars. Now, however, a more open salary cap and streamlined rules are being called upon to make Major League Soccer clubs more competitive across their rosters.The size of the change could have massive ramifications. Berg will be expected to gather consensus with owners with very different interests in spending, and then usher it in in a way that excites current and prospective fans. Rumored potential shifts to the tune of $10-20m a year could make MLS competitive with nearly any non-top five league, but could also significantly decrease parity. 
• Schedule Change: 2027 will feature perhaps MLS’s most significant change, ever. The shift from a Spring-to-Fall calendar to the “European calendar” will have major impacts in nearly every category, from media coverage to ticket sales strategies, and sponsorship engagements to roster building strategies.It can be a moment that MLS uses to reintroduce itself to North America, and re-sell the product to new fans or others who have dismissed it. The schedule change is arguably the most aspirational move MLS has made in decades, and maybe a generational chance to evolve.
• Media Rights: The Apple deal has fallen under a ton of scrutiny, namely due to the lack of promotion being provided by the rights holder, the lack of a substantive linear partnership, and the comparatively small audience that subscribes to the platform.The next deal, starting in 2029, will need to make MLS much more accessible. MLS is looking for a substantial pay day, but can’t sacrifice an audience for a slightly bigger check.
• Youth Development: Of course we were going to bring this up, but we’ll note Larry Berg does too!The investment in MLS Academies and homegrown talent, an endeavor only started in earnest a decade ago (or less) is paying off more each year. The quality of the new Homegrown stars—Mehmeti, Gozo, Sullivan, Tsakiris, Hall, etc.—has taken a step up. That quality will be even more important if MLS loosens its roster rules. Youth development can help create greater parity alongside greater investment, and provide clubs different options to remain competitive. Similarly, balancing spend with greater transfer revenue can allow clubs like Real Salt Lake, Philadelphia Union, and New York Red Bulls to generate additional income to fund expanded roster costs.Finally, the “MLS is a retirement league” perception has been especially persistent, and a Golden Generation of MLS homegrowns leading the U.S. and Canadian national teams may be the best way toward changing those perceptions. 

Matches to Watch:

LAFC vs. Toluca, Leagues Cup (August 8th, 7:30 PM ET, Apple TV & FS!): A battle of two of the continent’s best. Toluca, this year’s Concacaf Champions Cup winner, ran away with their first match, defeating Seattle 3-0. They look to continue to assert their North American dominance in a match against LAFC and their star-studded attack. Having taken two points via a penalty shootout victor against Chivas, LAFC remains in the running but must get the victory here in match two.

Gotham FC vs. San Diego Wave, NWSL (August 9th, 8:00 PM ET, Amazon Prime): Gotham’s electric form continued with a 1-0 victory via a Sam Kerr winner last week, allowing the Queens-bound side to maintain a one-point lead atop the table. San Diego Wave, meanwhile, stymied a slip down the standings with a huge 1-0 victory of their own against the Spirit. A win against Gotham could ensure they remain in the Shield conversation ‘til years end.

Orange County vs. Tampa Bay Rowdies, USL Championship (August 8th, 10:00 PM ET, ESPN+): A battle between the USL Championship's conference leaders. Orange County sits atop the Western Conference and welcomes Eastern Conference-leading Tampa Bay in a marquee interconference showdown with Players' Shield implications. The Rowdies arrive riding the momentum of a stunning comeback victory over Louisville, while Orange County looks to strengthen its grip on first place in the West. With both clubs leading their respective conferences, this could be a preview of a potential USL Championship Final.

US Soccerwise!

As part of our expanded slate post-World Cup, Soccerwise has launched a new weekly U.S. Soccer show! Join David Gass and this week’s co-hosts, former US youth and national team players Brianna Pinto and Walker Zimmerman, as they break down the future of the entire U.S. Soccer program in the wake of this summer’s World Cup.

Action Items, Kickback:

• Soccerwise: Gass, Bogert, Angeli, and Doyle are back with all your MLS and NWSL reviews and previews, and check out our new U.S. Soccerwise show! Make sure you also listen to Soccerwise with David Gass, Tom Bogert, Matt Doyle, and Jordan Angeli now on SiriusXM, every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 9 p.m. on SiriusXM FC 157, and on the SiriusXM App!
• First Touch: New episodes of First Touch are back next week! Follow First Touch KSM on social for more updates!