The Expansion Draft is a mechanism for new clubs Atlanta United FC and Minnesota United FC to prepare for their inaugural MLS seasons in 2017.
The draft will consist of five rounds, allowing Atlanta and Minnesota to select up to five players each from the list of eligible MLS players.
The 20 current MLS clubs will have the ability to protect 11 players from their rosters.
These 11 protected players, in addition to Generation adidas* players who do not graduate from the program at the end of the season and Homegrown Players* on a club's Supplemental or Reserve roster, will not be eligible for selection in the Expansion Draft. All remaining MLS players will be available for selection by the two expansion clubs.
Following October’s Expansion Priority Draft, which determined priority across six different player acquisition methods (Expansion Draft, SuperDraft, Allocation, USL/NASL Priority, Waiver/Re-Entry, Discovery) up for grabs for Minnesota and Atlanta, Atlanta will have the first pick followed by Minnesota.
* Generation adidas: Generation adidas is a joint program between MLS and adidas that is dedicated to developing exceptional domestic talent in a professional environment. Each year, a handful of top domestic collegiate underclassmen and youth national team players are signed by the league and placed in the SuperDraft through this program.
Until a player graduates from the program, Generation adidas players are on a club’s Supplemental Roster and are not charged against the team’s salary budget.
Homegrown Players:Homegrown Player Rule is a MLS program that allows MLS teams to sign local players from their own development academies directly to MLS first team rosters. There is no limit to the number of Homegrown Players a club may sign in a given year. Homegrown Players may occupy a spot on the Senior, Supplemental, or Reserve Roster.
* Supplemental or Reserve Roster:A MLS club’s active roster is comprised of up to 28 players. All 28 players are eligible for selection to each 18-player game-day squad during the regular season and playoffs.
In addition to the salary budget, each MLS Club spends additional funds on player compensation including money from a league-wide allocation pool (General & Targeted Allocation Money), the cost of Designated Players outside the salary budget, and money spent on the Supplemental and Reserve Rosters (players 21-28 on roster).
