Larry Berg will be the next MLS commissioner, according to multiple people familiar with the matter.
League owners voted Monday in New York to name Berg their commissioner in waiting, said the people, who were granted anonymity because the matter is private. Berg, a co-owner of LAFC, will eventually succeed Don Garber, who has held the commissioner role since 1999. The move comes at a pivotal moment for the league, which is currently navigating its post-World Cup environment and needs to begin work on its next media-rights arrangements.
It’s unclear when exactly Berg would take the reins. Garber’s contract expires at the end of 2027, but with the league’s looming calendar flip, that now lands in the middle of the 2027-28 season, meaning the transition might occur sooner. Neither Berg nor a rep for MLS responded immediately to a request for comment.
Berg was one of the three finalists in a commissioner search that began in earnest last year. One finalist, San Francisco 49ers executive Paraag Marathe, withdrew his name two weeks ago. The other, longtime media executive David Nathanson, was considered by owners this week in New York.
Berg will need to sell his LAFC equity as part of the transition, though there is likely no formal time frame for that to happen. Those shares could be purchased internally—the club has a large cap table—or in a more formal external process.
