NEW YORK --
Major League Soccer commissioner Don Garber has been given a five-year contract extension through December 2018.
MLS said Thursday that Garber's new contract began Jan. 1. The 56-year-old Garber has run MLS since 1999, when he replaced Doug Logan, the league's first commissioner. Garber had spent the previous three years running NFL International.
"It's the first five-year deal I've signed in 15 years. Every other deal was a three-year deal," Garber told SI.com. "I had always been of the mind that you sign three-year deals so you can give everybody the flexibility to determine what you want to do. The league was younger and less mature. Now we're teeing up a long-term commitment to each other."
Earlier in the week, Garber received more good news after receiving a clean bill of health after undergoing surgery for prostate cancer in July. Garber has undergone a series of comprehensive tests after being diagnosed earlier this year.
"I'm feeling good," Garber added. "I took a break during the month of August that allowed me to effectively recover. Now I'm back in the saddle and energized."
Garber's new deal was first reported by SI.com.
