NEW YORK (Tuesday, February 28, 2017) – Major League Soccer today announced updates to Roster Rules for the 2017 MLS season. With a continued strategic focus on cultivating young talent, two off-budget roster spots have been added to every club’s roster to sign additional Homegrown Players. Clubs may also now use up to $200,000 of their existing Targeted Allocation Money to sign Homegrown Players to their first professional contract.
“Youth development continues to be a key strategic priority for MLS,” said Todd Durbin, MLS Executive Vice President of Competition and Player Relations. “These two changes allow greater flexibility for our clubs, as the two additional roster spots give our clubs the ability to sign a greater number of promising young players, while the use of Targeted Allocation Money on new Homegrown Players gives them more financial resources to help retain that top talent.”
Updates were also made to the 2017 Roster Rules in the following areas:
- Intraleague loans that are initiated prior to the close of the Primary Transfer Window (February 14 - May 8) may now allow the loaned player to be recalled during the Secondary Transfer Window (July 10 – August 9) as agreed upon between the two clubs.
- The threshold for Extreme Hardship in 2017 will now include instances in which a club has fewer than four (4) available outfield substitutes.
- Targeted Allocation Money may now be used to sign Special Discovery Players.
For the 2017 MLS Roster Rules, please click here.
