MLS Appoints Private Equity Veteran Larry Berg as Next Commissioner

The Major League Soccer board of governors has voted to appoint Larry Berg as the league's next commissioner, according to reporting from The Guardian. Berg, a senior adviser at private equity firm 26North, will officially take over the role on January 1, 2027.

Berg's appointment marks a transition for the 30-year-old league. He takes over for Don Garber, who has held the commissioner post since 1999. Garber's current contract extends through the end of 2027, and the league announced Monday that he will move into the role of chairman once Berg assumes leadership to facilitate a seamless transition. As a condition of the appointment, the league stated that Berg must divest his shares of Los Angeles FC (LAFC).

Berg brings an extensive institutional investment background to the role, having previously served as a partner at Apollo Global Management and chair of McGraw-Hill Education. He joined LAFC as a limited partner at the club's 2014 launch and became a managing owner in 2016. Under the leadership of Berg and other primary owners—including lead managing partner Bennett Rosenthal, co-managing owner Brandon Beck, and executive chair Peter Guber—LAFC has become a model operation with a Forbes valuation of $1.32bn as of May.

Berg was selected over candidate David Nathanson, whose background was primarily in sports media with Fox and investments in the Seattle Kraken, Angel City FC, and the Seattle Sounders. Berg, who also serves as co-chair of the MLS sporting and competition committee, has previously stated that the league's ability to compete for players and secure funding is central to its goal of becoming a top-three U.S. sport by the end of the decade.