Business of Sports · SOCCER
Concacaf and SUM Will End U.S. Commercial Sales Deal at the End of 2026
Concacaf will strengthen its internal commercial operation as its SUM agreement expires. Separate collaboration on two 2027 competitions will continue.
Concacaf and Soccer United Marketing will end their exclusive U.S. commercial sales agreement when it expires at the end of 2026, with the confederation preparing to strengthen its own sponsorship sales and partnership-management operation.
The organizations mutually agreed not to renew after a decade, according to Concacaf’s announcement and an October 29 InsiderSport report. SUM is Major League Soccer’s commercial arm. Financial terms were not disclosed. Its next phase will expand the sponsorship portfolio.
Selected collaboration will continue. The organizations identified the 2027 Gold Cup and the 2027 Nations League Finals, scheduled March 25–28 at SoFi Stadium, as initiatives on which they will keep working together.
The transition is separate from Concacaf’s existing television arrangements. In May, the confederation and TelevisaUnivision announced a renewed U.S. Spanish-language media-rights partnership through 2029. That contract includes two editions of each tournament: the 2027 and 2029 Gold Cups and the 2026–27 and 2028–29 Nations League competitions, with coverage across the company’s television and streaming platforms.
The Nations League involves all 41 Concacaf member associations in a biennial competition with league play across three divisions. It culminates in finals that determine the regional champion and also provides a qualifying pathway into the Gold Cup. The Gold Cup brings together 16 national teams from North America, Central America and the Caribbean every two years.
Concacaf general secretary Philippe Moggio described TelevisaUnivision as a long-standing strategic partner in the May announcement, emphasizing the relationship’s role in connecting those competitions with Spanish-speaking audiences in the United States.
TelevisaUnivision said the renewal also builds on its previously announced commitment to Concacaf’s women’s competitions. Its sports leadership said coverage planning for the next Gold Cup was already underway. Those media arrangements concern broadcast distribution, a different function from selling and managing the sponsorship relationships covered by the departing SUM agreement.
