- 3 hours ago
The MLS Cup Trophy and MLS broadcaster Kevin Egan joins the show live in studio to preview the MLS Cup Final between Inter Miami and Vancouver this Saturday.
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00:00The Philip Anschutz Trophy, am I saying it correctly?
00:04Yeah, Philip Anschutz, yeah.
00:05The MLS Cup Trophy is named for soccer visionary Philip F. Anschutz.
00:12And the trophy reflects, do you know this, the traditions of the game
00:15while providing a dynamic and forward-looking design.
00:18Wow.
00:18Were you aware of that?
00:19How beautifully said.
00:20Since 1996, the MLS Cup Championship Trophy has been presented as a symbol
00:26of the highest achievement in North America's top-flight professional soccer league.
00:31I'm guessing that's the MLS.
00:32Am I correct there?
00:33I believe so.
00:34I just wanted to make sure.
00:35All right.
00:35So we're looking at your attire today.
00:37We're looking.
00:37Yeah.
00:38So you impressed with his Galaxy jersey?
00:41Yeah.
00:41I brought out the OG Galaxy jersey.
00:45They were the last team to hoist the trophy.
00:48True.
00:48Yeah.
00:49Those are your reasons.
00:49You're in Miami, right?
00:51I'm in Miami.
00:51Vancouver are the visitors, and you're wearing a Galaxy jersey.
00:53I thought it was a questionable choice at best
00:55because he's a big Inter-Miami fan, and he's a Uruguayan.
00:58He loves Luis Suarez.
01:00He's protesting because Suarez has been on the bench.
01:02I'm not thrilled about that, but I understand.
01:03No, I think he was kind of for the punishment.
01:08Kevin Egan is with us.
01:10So he's leading Apple TV's pregame, halftime, and postgame coverage
01:13of MLS Cup on Saturday.
01:16It's free to watch through Apple TV or the app or online at tv.apple.com.
01:23Pregame starts at 1 o'clock.
01:24Hey, you've got a long day ahead of you.
01:26Yeah, a long day.
01:27Great day, though.
01:27Great day.
01:28This is, I think, widely regarded, guys,
01:30as the greatest MLS Cup final matchup of all time.
01:34The greatest of all time.
01:35Because of Leo Messi.
01:36Because of Leo Messi.
01:38But also the stories.
01:39Jordi Alba, Sergio Busquets, it's their final game.
01:42This is it for them.
01:43Will they go out as champions?
01:45Will they go out with a bit of heartbreak with Thomas Muller,
01:47who has been like kryptonite for Lionel Messi throughout his career?
01:50I mean, Muller, it's astonishing when you dig into the stats.
01:53It's Muller has the best record of any player that's played 10 games or more
01:57against Lionel Messi.
01:58And there are a lot of players that have played that many games against Messi.
02:01But Muller, through his time with Bayern Munich and Germany,
02:04has been a torn in Messi's side.
02:06Like, think about, you're a big fan of the game, right, Solana?
02:09Yeah.
02:092010 World Cup quarterfinal, when Maradona was the coach.
02:12Mascherano was the captain of Argentina.
02:15And Messi was beaten by Muller.
02:17Muller opened the scoring that day in a 4-0.
02:19Boom out.
02:204-0.
02:21Battered them.
02:21Then four years later, Germany beat Argentina in the World Cup final.
02:25Then, you know, Barcelona suffered their greatest ever,
02:28their biggest European defeat, 8-2 in 2020.
02:31And it wasn't just Messi.
02:32It was Suarez.
02:32It was Busquets.
02:33It was Alba all on the pitch.
02:34It was Thomas Muller that opened the scoring that day.
02:36Thomas Muller scored a brace in the first half that day.
02:39So Muller has always had the edge over Messi.
02:41And he said on Apple TV recently that he's going to come hunting Messi yet again.
02:45So it's a beautiful, like we're in the storytelling business, and this is one of those subplots
02:49that's just class.
02:50I'm glad you bring it up because I know Muller was trying to downplay it a little bit.
02:54And I know he's been dealing with a little bit of injury too.
02:58So maybe he didn't want to like lift those expectations of he has to perform.
03:01But, I mean, it's Messi, Muller, like this is, you know, best case scenario for the MLS, I imagine, right?
03:08Yeah, it is.
03:09It certainly is.
03:09And look, if Muller starts, he's got a great guy coming in off the bench in Ryan Gould
03:13who's a designated player who's one of their, if not the best player that Vancouver have had
03:18over the past few years, you know, not named Thomas Muller.
03:21So hopefully Muller's good to go.
03:22Hopefully we get a great game, guys.
03:24I'm just buzzing to be in South Florida again.
03:25I used to live here.
03:26I lived here for three and a half years, and it's great to be back.
03:28For those who don't know Kevin Egan, by the way, prior to joining MLS season pass in 2023,
03:34he was broadcasting MLS matches with the Chicago Fire, which is where I'm from.
03:39Oh, well, we're in Chicago.
03:41Highland Park, North Suburbs, and Atlanta United as well.
03:45But he was also a broadcaster, I don't know if you know, for WWE.
03:49And for me, I'm not a huge wrestling guy either, but I do have a Mount Rushmore.
03:54Okay, here we go.
03:55Wrestling announcer.
03:56Wow.
03:57Are you ready?
03:57Yes, hit me, please.
03:58I've got Mean Gene Okerlund.
04:00Okay, love Mean Gene.
04:01Gorilla Monsoon.
04:03Of course.
04:04Gordon Soley.
04:05Okay.
04:06You guys are a little young, but you know Gordon Soley.
04:08Gordon Soley.
04:09There's only one spot left.
04:11I know.
04:12Lord Alfred Hayes.
04:13Okay.
04:14So no JR.
04:15No Michael Cole.
04:16It's beyond my, like, I'm a very early wrestling fan.
04:19I'm much older than you guys.
04:20What do you think about my Mount Rushmore there?
04:22I think I like it.
04:23I mean, I like it.
04:24Look, I was, like, people know this about me.
04:26I was not from the wrestling world at all.
04:28But I got offered an attempt to go audition to be part of it.
04:32And I went and I did it.
04:34And I absolutely loved it.
04:34I fell away from, I fell in love, sorry, with the blockbuster feel of what we were doing.
04:39The backstage reporter was the audition.
04:42And so I'm acting with people, you know, and you're avoiding wrestlers and you're having fun with the situation.
04:47And then I got promoted to commentator, which is a completely different beast.
04:50It's a completely different job in a way because you're ringside.
04:54And I loved it.
04:55It was three years, but, man, it was not.
04:57Who's your favorite wrestling announcer of all time?
05:00I'm staring at him.
05:01Yeah.
05:01It was Kevin Egan and Craig Minervini.
05:03You said no one ever.
05:04So it was Kevin Egan and Craig Minervini.
05:07And then, of course, you were in Chicago for a while.
05:09Deep dish pizza, Chicago style.
05:10Yeah.
05:11Deep dish pizza.
05:12Better than New York style.
05:14Better than Detroit.
05:15But you know what?
05:16I don't think so anymore.
05:18Wow.
05:18I would have said, yeah.
05:20And don't give me the, you're a bit of a yuppie.
05:22You're from Highland Park.
05:23That is true.
05:23You know, I'm not exactly a city guy.
05:30I'm starving now.
05:31So a bit of deep dish would be lovely, actually, if there was any.
05:33But you're not a big deep dish fan anymore?
05:35It's gorgeous.
05:36But one slice.
05:37Too much.
05:37Like, all of a sudden, now you're getting older.
05:39And you're watching what you're eating.
05:39And deep dish is, it's a beast.
05:42Like, it'll put you to sleep, wouldn't it?
05:43Yeah.
05:44It's a lot to handle.
05:45So New York City.
05:46A New York City slice.
05:48Yeah.
05:48You'd prefer that?
05:49Chicago style tavern pizza.
05:51Square cut.
05:52I mean, nothing bad.
05:52They're both great.
05:53I live in Atlanta now.
05:54And the food scene in Atlanta, we've got a long way to go.
05:57Compared to Chicago and New York.
05:59I was just in Atlanta a couple months ago.
06:00My college roommate is the president at AFC Bournemouth.
06:04Oh, wow.
06:05And they had a little Premier League action at the Atlanta stadium.
06:09Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
06:10Yeah.
06:11It was kind of exciting.
06:11We're going to have eight World Cup games coming to Atlanta, Georgia, and that stadium.
06:14So let me ask you this.
06:16Win or lose.
06:17The Messi era in MLS and Inter-Miami is a smashing success, or does he need to hoist this trophy?
06:26It's funny.
06:27Like, I was debating this.
06:28We were having a back-and-forth conversation with Chris Whittingham only last night about this.
06:32And we were talking about the pros and cons.
06:34There's no doubt about it.
06:35Commercially, Messi's effect has been absolutely insanely successful.
06:40It's the most popular jersey and the most sold jersey in the world in any sport is the
06:45Messi pink Miami jersey.
06:46Think about that for a second.
06:47A Major League Soccer jersey is the most popular on the planet, but he hasn't won it here yet.
06:51He hasn't won MLS Cup.
06:52And if he gets over the line here, I hope that it piques the interest of more casual sports
06:56fans in this country and more fans of the beautiful game around the world that can see
07:01this.
07:01Certainly at a time, like, my parents are in Dublin, Ireland.
07:04Our pregame show will be at like 6.30 on a Saturday for them.
07:08It's ideal.
07:09They can sit back and relax.
07:10We're obviously global with Apple TV.
07:12So hopefully it gets a few more eyeballs.
07:14We're talking 7.30 Barcelona time for fans of Messi in Barcelona.
07:17And I just hope this is one of those occasions where people say Major League Soccer.
07:21Wow.
07:21It's actually come a long way because it has.
07:23I started broadcasting the league in 2012 and it's remarkable the steps the league has
07:27taken since then.
07:28That's why I'm fascinated with this entire storyline of Messi hoisting the cup because a lot of
07:33people internationally or, you know, you mentioned Barcelona.
07:36They saw Messi going to MLS and they're like, oh, he's going to run away with that league.
07:41That league doesn't stack up against the best leagues in the world.
07:44And I think, you know, to a certain extent it is true, but you're right.
07:47I mean, you're talking about Messi, Mueller in the final and the way Sun has come on and
07:52and just like the name heavily linked now to correct.
07:55Yeah, I'm looking forward to that.
07:58Would Messi winning the title fuel those those criticisms of the MLS or do you do you think
08:03at this point because it took Messi three seasons that people are starting to respect
08:07the fact that, hey, the MLS from within has grown?
08:10Yeah, it's grown without question.
08:12Like it's we're in the weeds and that's the hardest part when we're looking for growth.
08:16Any of us as sports fans and maybe it's your local team.
08:18You're like, why haven't we gotten better?
08:20But maybe you have gradually and you just haven't noticed because you're in those weeds.
08:23When I take a bird's eye view of what's happened in MLS over the last decade or so,
08:27it is remarkable to see the growth.
08:28However, we've still got a long way to go.
08:30And I think there is certain whether it's fields like pitches like Vancouver's pitch
08:35is poor at BC place.
08:37It's a turf field that you want to see good grass for our game.
08:41It's a much better game when it's on beautiful grass.
08:44There's elements to our league where we will continue to evolve and grow.
08:47There's no question about that.
08:48But I just hope that we continue to take those steps.
08:51Messi being here has helped enormously.
08:53And I think Messi losing, in a way, to your point, has probably helped the narrative.
08:57But there's always going to be naysayers.
08:59There's so many negative people that just will cling on to negativity.
09:02When in reality, I would rather focus on what I've seen the league do and where the league is going.
09:07And I think in 10 more years from now, I'm going to look back on this moment and think,
09:11man, I didn't realize how far we had to go because I think MLS trajectory is there for us.
09:15I will say, I mean, we never talked MLS until Messi got to Miami.
09:22And I don't think, I mean, I can't recall seeing inter-Miami jerseys around.
09:28Like, you see Messi jerseys all over.
09:30So, I mean, it's had an immediate impact in South Florida for sure.
09:34And I would imagine nationally as well, just because you have the biggest superstar in the sport.
09:40Yeah, I just think, though, when you think about the kids today growing up, right, that they're conditioned by soccer.
09:45And it's global in every sense now.
09:48When you want to watch the Premier League, you're on NBC.
09:50You want to watch the Bundesliga, ESPN.
09:53There's all these leagues are now available.
09:55So, MLS isn't just competing against sports here in the United States and in North America.
09:59It's competing against every other league in the world that's now available on streaming apps and on TV here in America too.
10:05So, so much competition.
10:06But I think kids today are growing up playing soccer an awful lot more than they used to.
10:10And I think the parents, maybe I'm 40 and I have two really young kids that are mad into it, that absolutely love it today.
10:16My wife was telling me about this book that James brought home from the library at school about Messi and Ronaldo.
10:21And he wants to know more about it.
10:23And I'm thinking, I don't know if that was the case for the generation above me here in America.
10:28I'm not sure it was.
10:29Yeah, I have a 21-year-old son and it was not.
10:31It was not the case at all.
10:34He is into Miami a little bit because of Leo Messi.
10:37Does Whittingham, when he's having a conversation with you, break into his British accent?
10:41It's unbelievable, isn't it?
10:42Right?
10:43The fancy lad.
10:43Yeah, the fancy lad.
10:44Yeah, yeah.
10:45He has to use these fancy words, you know, like, just let it go, Whitty.
10:48Just be one of the guys.
10:49I am fighting every fiber in my body to start breaking out my Irish accent.
10:55Oh, please do it.
10:56Please do it.
10:57No, I promise Alana.
10:58Yeah, I promise Alana.
10:59No, go on.
10:59Give us one example, please.
11:01Well, let me just ask you.
11:01Have you ever had the Shamrock Shake at McDonald's?
11:04Absolutely not.
11:04Yeah.
11:05Oh, you haven't?
11:05Shame on you, Huck.
11:06Interesting.
11:06Huck, are you drinking green beer now?
11:08What do you think?
11:08I thought that was like the national drink of Ireland.
11:11Stop it, Huck.
11:12The Shamrock Shake is not.
11:13The Tita Tart, top of the morning to you.
11:14Do you want a few Lucky Charms?
11:16Do you have to eat Lucky Charms, then?
11:18Do you want a shark when you show it up and listen to yourself?
11:20I can't believe this.
11:21This is a shocking turn of events.
11:24Please don't tell me you pollute your Guinness.
11:26At least just tell me when you have a pint of Guinness, you leave it as is.
11:28I could never drink a Guinness.
11:31Can't split the G?
11:32Well, not only can't.
11:33I could probably split the G because I'm very talented that way.
11:35I don't know if you can.
11:36But I can't drink one.
11:37That's like petroleum to me.
11:39I need the wimpiest American beer.
11:42By the way, 5 o'clock hour is the Funky Buddha happy hour.
11:44And thank you to our friends at Funky Buddha Brewery.
11:46But that Guinness, do you drink it room temperature the way they...
11:50No, we like it ice cold.
11:51Oh, you do?
11:52That's a myth.
11:52But isn't it very thick?
11:53It's like petroleum.
11:54I have a sip of that.
11:56It has less calories than your wimpy light beers.
11:58Nah, but there's a...
11:59You can't drink a Guinness.
12:00Oh, I split the G.
12:01Stop it.
12:02Every time.
12:02But I'm not talking about splitting the G.
12:04I'm talking about drinking the full Guinness.
12:05I'll throw down Guinnesses all day.
12:06How many pints can you knock down, Egan?
12:08I don't know.
12:09I don't know.
12:10Oh, you know.
12:10The point is, later in the night, I might not have been able to count.
12:13We were in London, my wife and I, for the first time in February.
12:16And I could not believe how many beers people drink throughout a day.
12:22Or just at lunchtime.
12:23Well, in London.
12:24But I'm imagining it's very similar.
12:27I don't think...
12:28Honestly, my Irish friends here in America would think...
12:31I think people drink more here than they do in Ireland.
12:33Really?
12:34Yes.
12:34Without question.
12:36Without question.
12:36My neighbours will bring their kids for a walk.
12:38And next thing, they'll have a casual margarita in their hand.
12:40Oh, they're just trying to impress you.
12:41In the afternoon.
12:42They're trying to impress the Irish.
12:43No, they're not.
12:44There's no...
12:44In Ireland, people would never do that.
12:47It's also not in Ireland about...
12:48It's never about getting drunk.
12:50It's about being social.
12:51And there's never TVs on in the pubs.
12:53When you go in casually, you'll very rarely see TVs on.
12:56It's much more about, as we say, C-R-A-I-C, the crack.
12:59It's about conversation.
13:00It's about singing songs.
13:01It's about telling jokes, taking the mick out of your friends.
13:04It's a very social place, Ireland.
13:07You're telling me, though, that in every refrigerator in Ireland, there's not a ready-to-go shamrock shake at any given moment?
13:14I mean...
13:15I'm having a tough time buying this.
13:16What are we dealing with?
13:18What are we dealing with over here?
13:20I told you.
13:20You read it.
13:21I told you.
13:21That's where I learned my geography and history.
13:24It was from McDonald's and pop culture and fast food.
13:26So, Kevin Egan, he will be leading Apple TV's pregame, halftime, and postgame coverage of MLS Cup on Saturday.
13:33It is free for all to watch through Apple TV, the Apple TV app, online at tv.apple.com.
13:41Pregame show starts at 1 p.m.
13:44I'm guessing you don't want to make a prediction.
13:45I think it's going to go to extra time.
13:48I'll give you that much.
13:48Really?
13:48I think it's really close.
13:49I think Vancouver are a much, much better team than people think.
13:52I think they're going to come here and not give a damn that they're in Miami and going up against Messi.
13:56Muller is a mental giant.
13:58And I just think they're going to impose their game on Miami, and they're going to cause Miami big-time problems.
14:03You think there's going to be huge celebs in attendance?
14:06Yes, big-time.
14:07Who do you think?
14:07Who do you know?
14:08Who do you know?
14:08It'll be Solana.
14:10Solana's going to be there.
14:11Are you going to be there on Saturday?
14:12I will not.
14:13I will not be there.
14:14Well, I worked the Miami Heat broadcaster's Heat game that night, unfortunately.
14:17I'm going to call in six, Solana.
14:18But I remember, wasn't Messi's first game?
14:20Wasn't LeBron there and Tom Brady there?
14:22We're going to have that.
14:24Do you know of any?
14:25Serena, do we have anyone?
14:26Do we want to know?
14:27Do you want to share with us?
14:28Well, I did.
14:30As we get closer, she won't.
14:33Maybe for Mike Cugno at CBS 4.
14:36The world's number one tennis player was there the last day, Carlos Alcaraz.
14:39That's what I want.
14:40I wanted to try to get some sort of breaking news here because Carlito Alcaraz brought
14:44out the trophy.
14:45And I was wondering, what are you doing there?
14:48Carlitos Alcaraz.
14:49Yeah, what are you doing there?
14:49Everybody calls him Carlitos.
14:50I'm sure Kevin does as well.
14:51I call him Carlos.
14:52Yeah.
14:53I've never heard that in my life.
14:55Well, he brought out the trophy, which I thought was random.
14:57I mean, he's the number one tennis player in the world.
14:59Sure.
14:59But just because he's there, was that the decision?
15:02We're like, hey, Alcaraz is there.
15:03We're going to have him take out the trophy for the Eastern Conference champions.
15:07And what if Inter Miami hadn't won?
15:08Would it have still been Carlos Alcaraz?
15:11And I'm just wondering if that's been set up already.
15:13Will there be a celebrity passing the champions the trophy?
15:17I know David Beckham will obviously be there, right?
15:19To accept the trophy.
15:21Steve Nash is one of the owners of Vancouver.
15:22Oh, I didn't know that.
15:23I'm not sure.
15:23Yeah, I'm not sure.
15:24He's going to be there.
15:24I think we're going to see a host of celebrities.
15:27We've seen many from Serena Williams to all sorts of great Hollywood actors.
15:32And that's one of the fun aspects of MLS right now.
15:34The ownership group, when you think about some of the owners that we have, from Matthew
15:38McConaughey in Austin to Magic Johnson out in LA to David Beckham in Miami, it's the who's
15:43who, really, of actors and sports stars that are owning in the league right now.
15:47Oh, what a delight.
15:48Kevin Egan and the trophy.
15:50We got to see the trophy up close and personal.
15:53I mean, that's kind of cool.
15:54And maybe Inter-Miami and Leo Messi will be hoisting it on Saturday.
15:58We will find out.
15:59Chase Stadium is where all the action will take place.
16:04I'm loving the comments, by the way.
16:05What, when you're in Atlanta, you ever eat at the Varsity?
16:10I just did for the first time.
16:11Did you really?
16:11I went there.
16:12We shot a FIFA documentary from the Varsity.
16:15Not going to lie to you.
16:16Shouldn't admit this, but I didn't eat there.
16:18We shot it, and I kept going because it didn't look, didn't look too thick.
16:23Well, Crowder, so I've always wanted to go to the Varsity, and I've only been to Atlanta
16:26a few times, and I didn't get to go last time, but Crowder grew up in Atlanta, and he's
16:30telling me, like, don't go there.
16:32It's disgusting.
16:32It's greasy, and whatever.
16:33He's there since 1928.
16:34I know.
16:35I kind of want to experience.
16:36Well, we should go together.
16:37My wife was telling me the dinner was ready.
16:39I was on the way home.
16:39I'm going to text Witty and see what he's doing, and we'll get together.
16:42Witty, the fancy lad, is not going to eat at the Varsity.
16:44That's true.
16:45He will not eat at the Varsity.
16:46This guy has a butler, or he could be a butler.
16:50All right, Kevin, thank you for having a time for us.
16:52Appreciate it.
16:53Thanks for having me.
16:53There you go.
16:54That's the MLS Trophy, and the Cup Championship is Saturday.
17:00I believe it's a 2.30 start.
17:01Yeah.
17:01What do they call that?
17:02A kickoff?
17:03Kickoff.
17:03Well done.
17:04How about that?
17:04I'm learning my soccer lingo.
17:06That's all.
17:07Thank you for having me.
17:09I'll stop.
17:09Yeah.
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