Amazon has been in sports for a while now but always on the national front. Prime video is a place to watch Thursday Night NFL football games and a way to integrate Prime Video and the MLB and NBA. But now Amazon is the sole digital streaming destination for all non-nationally televised Sounders FC matches throughout the club’s home broadcast territory. This marks the second time Prime Video has reached a streaming agreement with a sports franchise, and the first deal with a professional MLS soccer club. Starting with Sounders FC’s August 26 match at the LA Galaxy, the three-year agreement is set to run through the 2022 Major League Soccer season.
“At Sounders FC, we often refer to ourselves as a family, and that notion extends to the greater Seattle community. When I think about our hometown, few brands are as closely associated with Seattle’s sense of innovation and ingenuity as Amazon,” said Sounders FC Owner Adrian Hanauer. “This is a proud day for our club, as we’re now able to bring our fans Sounders FC matches on the world’s premier video streaming service through a company that is synonymous with our city’s culture. On behalf of our organization, I am thrilled to welcome Amazon and Prime Video to the Sounders family.”
With the 2020 MLS regular season resuming in just five days, all regionally televised Sounders FC MLS matches will now be available on Prime Video with a Prime membership. Sounders FC’s regional broadcast territory extends throughout the entirety of Washington State – inclusive of the traditional Seattle-Tacoma-Everett television DMA and key population centers like Spokane, Yakima, Tri-Cities and Vancouver, Wash. Simply put, fans everywhere in the Evergreen State are now able to watch the Rave Green via Prime Video. Fans can watch at home or on the go across hundreds of compatible devices, including smart TVs, mobile devices, Fire TV, Fire tablet, Apple TV, Chromecast, game consoles, Comcast X1, or from the web. JOEtv continues to be the regional television home of the Rave Green, alongside radio partners Sports Radio 950 KJR AM and El Rey 1360 AM.
“We’re excited to join forces with Sounders FC to give Prime members around Washington State access to all regionally broadcast MLS matches on Prime Video over the next three seasons,” said Marie Donoghue, VP of Global Sports Video at Amazon. “Sounders FC is a fundamental part of our culture here in the Pacific Northwest, and as a club they have always been at the forefront of innovation in professional sports. We share this common vision for innovation at Prime Video, and are committed to delighting fans and enhancing the value of a Prime membership through sports, and we believe this deal accomplishes just that.”
