Senators ask MLS chief Don Garber to explain money moving between SUM, U.S. national teams

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Senators ask MLS chief Don Garber to explain money moving between SUM, U.S. national teams

Updated: October 6, 2016 — 8:18 PM EDT

by Jonathan Tannenwald

You don't have to be a soccer business wonk to have heard of Soccer United Marketing, the commercial arm of Major League Soccer that handles sponsorship and marketing deals for many high-profile soccer events in the United States.

But even the most keen observers of the industry have often struggled to shine light on SUM's inner workings - especially the revenues generated by the events SUM puts on.

Those revenues have long been considered by outsiders to be pretty big, as SUM holds or held rights relating to the U.S. men's and women's national teams, the Mexican men's national team's games in the U.S., the Gold Cup and the Copa América Centenario.

The U.S. women's national team's place in SUM's portfolio has been in a particular spotlight recently, because the women's players' union has been trying to bolster their case for equal pay by citing the revenues their immense popularity has generated.