​Photo by Megan Briggs/Getty ImagesAmid conversations about MLS’ place in the American sports landscape, Don Garber believes a proper appraisal of the league is long overdue.Given the general disposition of the American public toward soccer as a sport, MLS has struggled to attain the popularity that leagues like the NBA, NFL, and MLB have over the years.Even the arrival of Lionel Messi, considered by many to be the greatest player of all time, along with the rousing success of the FIFA World Cup, hasn’t done enough to turn the tide.Don Garber believes MLS should be considered a top-five league in the United StatesSpeaking at the Tuned In summit recently, MLS Commissioner Don Garber explained why he believes MLS belongs in the conversation of the US’ biggest sports leagues.While they don’t experience the same ratings success or popularity as the other, more established sports leagues, they’ve experienced enough success in recent years to be considered on the same level, at least from a discussion standpoint.“When all of you [media] would say the big four, we say, ‘Well, there is a big five,’ and I’ll add when (NWSL Commissioner) Jessica (Berman) comes up, the big six,” Garber told Front Office Sports.“What does a ‘major league’ mean? It means you have millions of fans that have deep connections to the community, you have players that want to be using your league as a league of choice, that you’re influential globally like we are with FIFA, or our teams getting invited to the White House. You need to be part of the global conversation here, and we are.”“We all know what regional sports is like. We started seeing softness there because we are not the NBA or NHL or basketball,” Garber said. “We started seeing those deals not getting renewed. We’re not getting renewed at the numbers we want.”“The comparisons are uncomfortable. How do you rate that? You roll them all up. If we were going to take our top three, like the other leagues do, our ratings would be five times what they are today.”Due to their recent media rights deal with Apple TV, MLS’ viewership data isn’t publicly disclosed, as Apple are under no obligation to share these numbers.As such, it is hard to truly appraise where the MLS stands in comparison to more established sports leagues in America like the NFL and the NBA.Read more:‘All that free-kick was for nothing’: Fans react as Columbus Crew stun Lionel Messi and Inter Miami 2-1 in late thrillerWATCH: Lionel Messi scores unreal goal from near-impossible angle in Inter Miami lossMLS analyst issues clear response to Harry Kane’s hopes of competing in NFL