Expansion Draft Details Announced Ahead of Minnesota United’s Inaugural Season
Minnesota United are gearing up for its inaugural season in the MLS next year as the details for the Expansion Draft are released on Tuesday. The draft will be held on Tuesday, December 13th and will consist of five rounds, which will allow Minnesota United and Atlanta United to select five players from the list of eligible MLS players.
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MLS Soccer News: Major League Soccer announced the details for the Expansion Draft as Minnesota United prepares for its inaugural MLS season in 2017.
The Expansion Draft will be held on Tuesday, December 13 at 2 p.m. ET and consist of five rounds, allowing Minnesota United and Atlanta United to select up to five players each from the list of eligible MLS players.
“This is an exciting announcement, it’s important to know the process and the parameters of the Expansion Draft,” said Minnesota United Sporting Director Manny Lagos. “The Expansion Draft provides a unique opportunity for us as a club entering Major League Soccer to help develop our roster immediately. The buildup will be exciting and it will be fun for our fans to watch our roster develop.”
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.
Each MLS club may lose a maximum of one player in the Expansion Draft. Once a player is selected from a club’s unprotected roster, that club is removed from the Expansion Draft process and may not lose any further players.
For the full 2016 Expansion Draft Rules, please click here.
In advance of the Expansion Draft, MLS will hold the Expansion Priority Draft, a priority selection process used when more than one expansion club enters the League in the same season. A coin flip will decide which club – Minnesota United or Atlanta United – will receive the first selection in the Expansion Priority Draft. After the first selection, the Draft will continue with alternating club picks. The Expansion Priority Draft will be held on October 16th.
The Expansion Priority Draft will determine Minnesota United and Atlanta United’s selection ranking in the below six player acquisition methods:
- 2016 MLS Expansion Draft (Picks 1 & 2)
- 2017 MLS SuperDraft (Picks 1 & 2)
- Allocation Ranking Order (Ranks 1 & 2)
- 2016 Waiver Draft and Re-Entry Draft Ranking (Ranks 21 & 22)
- Discovery Player Ranking (Ranks 21 & 22)
- USL/NASL Player Priority Ranking (Ranks 1 & 2)
For more information on the above player acquisition methods, please click here.
Source/Photo Credit: Minnesota United
