‘Drive to Survive’ creators unveil new MLS project, ‘Onside: Major League Soccer’

MLS and Apple TV+ unveiled the latest product of their ten-year partnership on Thursday, airing the first trailer from the upcoming documentary series ‘Onside: Major League Soccer’.

The show will be an eight-part documentary series with “unprecedented access to players, coaches and clubs”, giving a behind-the-scenes look at America’s top soccer league. The series has been created by Box to Box Films, the production company behind iconic sports documentaries ‘Formula 1: Drive to Survive’, ‘Break Point’, ‘Senna’ and ‘Diego Maradona’.

The documentary series will premiere on Apple TV+ on Friday, February 21. Here’s a first look at the trailer...

The series will cover the 2024 MLS season, a ground-breaking year for soccer in the United States. A Lionel Messi-led Inter Miami stormed through the regular season but faced a shock in the playoffs. An unfancied LA Galaxy team emerged from mediocrity to challenge for the championship for the first time in a decade.

Who is in the new MLS documentary?

The show’s creators appeared at the MLS Media Day on Thursday and revealed that the season’s unpredictability had forced them to rethink some preconceptions.

Box to Box Films co-founder Paul Martin explained: “I think that the great thing about making these shows is that, when we sat here 12 months ago we had an idea of what it was going to look like. I’m pleased to say that now we’re back having finished the series, it’s completely different."

“Until you get into it and see the players up close, and the club owners and the coaches, you’re never quite sure what it’s going to be,” Martin added.

Also in attendance on Thursday were FC Cincinnati defender Matt Miazga and Philadelphia Union starlet Cavan Sullivan. Both play key roles in the series, albeit for very different reasons.

Miazga was the reigning MLS Defender of the Year heading into 2024 but suffered a serious knee injury in the summer and was forced to undergo major surgery. Things were very different for Sullivan, the Manchester City-bound prodigy who became the league’s young-ever player when he took to the field aged 14 years and 293 days.

The shows will also focus heavily on the likes of reigning MLS Cup MVP Cucho Hernández, French World Cup winner Olivier Giroud and Joseph Paintsil, who enjoyed a breakthrough season with the Galaxy. Lionel Messi does not appear to be specifically followed by the documentary but his Inter Miami feature heavily in the trailer.

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