#120: Major League Soccer SVP & CMO Radhika Duggal | Turning Casual Viewers Into Lifelong Fans

About this episode

The World Cup will get Americans talking about soccer. Can MLS keep the conversation going?

This week on Soul & Science, Jason Harris is joined by Radhika Duggal, SVP and CMO of Major League Soccer, to discuss what it takes to grow a league when your competition isn’t just other sports—it’s everything people do for fun. With a background in consulting, fintech, and pharma, Radhika brings an outsider’s perspective to MLS, using data to understand how to turn first-time viewers into diehard fans.

They discuss how mapping the full fan journey reveals that consumers stay in the “awareness and consideration” phase much longer than you might expect, and why the most important step for growth is understanding what your consumer is looking for. Radhika also shares why focus is her most important leadership tool, what it means to market a product that’s shared across clubs and platforms, and how she’s preparing MLS for a once-in-a-generation opportunity as the World Cup heads to the U.S.

Key Takeaways

✅ Moments don’t build fandom—habits do

✅ Understand what the consumer is looking for

✅ Fewer, bigger bets drive stronger results

✅ Always take time to say “thank you”✅ Big events need a long-term plan

Memorable Moments

💡 “It takes time to build interest and passion.”

💡 “Confidence will make you successful.”

💡 “Pick three things and make the outcomes as big as possible.”

💡 “Our job is to turn World Cup fever into MLS fever.”

💡 “Keep the main thing the main thing.”

Brought to you by Mekanism.