Designated Player Value in MLS 2009
by Sounder At Heart on May 30, 2009 9:23 AM PDT
in Major League Soccer
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It looks Seattle is likely to add some depth at the Forward position in June. Yes, this is outside of the transfer window, no I can't yet say who the player is. The player would be rotational (meaning not better than Jaqua/Montero/Seba), but considering that June is when the Open Cup proper starts, and the injuries that Sounders have faced this addition should help stave off our worries in the attack, but won't necessarily help the set piece situation.
Onto the DP trades in the past
Freddy Adu (not a DP but a exempted US MNT player) was dealt with Nick Rimando for Jay Nolly, a major allocation and future considerations. It was a rent a player because Adu was to turn 18 and eligible to transfer to Europe. RSL was able to buy low.
Chivas USA traded their slot in 2007 to New York Red Bulls for Amado Guevara.
Guevara was a decent player for NYRB, but not great. This year he is MVP quality, but that is three years after the deal.
He is a Honduran National though, so his value off the pitch must be considered.
Colorado Rapids traded their slot in 2008 to D.C. United for Christian Gómez for a two year period, which was later used to give Luciano Emilio a pay raise, taking him above the normal wage cap.
Gomez was a former MVP, so the value that the Rapids had is the highest we've seen.
D.C. United traded back their second slot to Colorado Rapids along with Ivan Guerrero in exchange for receiving Christian Gómez back.
In this deal you see that the DP slot has lost some value in the circles of MLS, likely due to a few failures (Denilson, Gallardo, Reyna and even Claudio Lopez who stayed in the league for 25% of the money).
The DP has lost some value over time, and it is notable that salaries of DPs range from 750k to 6,500k US $ or about 10,000 English Pounds a week to start. It will take more than just money to convince a player to come to MLS, as the league sits in around the 15-25 range for quality worldwide. So the DP targets would either be American/Canadian, post peak (over 30) or possibly a U-23 up and comer.
In the 2009 season with the CBA being negotiated, and the DP slot's final season in 2010 (RedBull is the only team with two that year), there may be more freedom to deal these slots, because a team that hasn't used it yet, may think that the future of the DP is likely to shift. Also since a DP is more likely to be a National Team player, in the 2009 to 2010 stretch they are quite likely to miss a few MLS matches.
MLS fans need to quit calling for Tevez, or Arshavin and understand that a player like Figo or Schevchenko is much more likely, no matter how regrettable. Goal.com just looked at "likely DPs" and notice they are all older. Too many clubs likely still see the DP as help for lagging attendance and not points in the table.
The good news is that in Seattle the ONLY reason to get a second DP would be to improve on an already good club, help overall depth and make a run for the silverware that the first year club has available (US Open Cup, Supporter's Shield, MLS Cup) and enter into contests in 2010 like the SuperLiga or CONCACAF Champions League.
That's the right way to make a personnel decision. What helps the team WIN. Let other teams worry about attendance.
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Dave, can you post the links you use that show MLS ranking in the 15-25 range? Ive run across a few, but can’t seem to find them anymore.
Where do you see MLS ranking in the near future? Let’s say 5 years from now. 10 years?
Also, where you at in the council voting if you don’t mind me asking?
by soundersfcfanboy on May 30, 2009 12:39 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs
I actually don’t have links for the ranking. It is just my impression, based on where I think a mid table team in MLS would be in other leagues. I think that the midtable is the best place to judge a league. so many leagues in the world have a great top 2-4 and nothing after that. MLS rarely has great teams, but also tends to only have one or two stinkers.
I’ve been thinking about buidling a table with average salaries for leagues, but really just need to decide what leagues to include. That might give a decent impression of league strength, because stronger leagues tend to pay more.
I think that the 2010 CBA and the success of the 2011 expansion to 18/19 teams will determine what the league becomes. There is a significant element of transition occuring, and the league structure may change greatly soon. Allowing a luxury tax type system to soften the cap would greatly add to the haves in the team while propping up the nots, plus with every team in a positive stadium situation come 2011 except for Chivas and DC, things should be very strong for MLS’ financial sustainability. Coming off of a World Cup should spur interest as well.
Last I checked (two weeks ago, i try not to harry Bart) I was at 19 of the 25 votes. I am going to campaign a bit in 214 this week, and email Bart Monday for the update.
by Dave Clark on May 30, 2009 12:58 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs
Good stuff!
I’m extremely interested in business side of things. Like:
-What sort of profit sharing there is across teams, if any.
-What affect from a finincial standpoint does Seattle coming into the league have.
-Which teams are profitable?
-What is allocation money?
-What does a trade for a DP look like exactly? Is it for another player, money, draft picks…?
-More information around how the salary cap functions in general.
-Transfer windows…? How exactly are players transfered?
Now, I know I can go look up some of this myself. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Designated_Player_Rule gives a good overview of what the Designated Player Rule is all about, but it doesn’t give details about WHAT is used to trade for a another teams DP’s slot. It also doesn’t say for how long that “trade” lasts. If we trade for a teams DP, how long do we get to keep it? I also haven’t heard any talk about if it’s possible to aquire a 3rd or 4th DP.
Overall it just seems like there are a lot of gaps around how players are moved and the financial aspect of the league.
by soundersfcfanboy on May 30, 2009 2:34 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs
As far as I know, the trade for the DP slot is exactly like trading for a player in that you make whatever deal is agreeable to both clubs. Also, again as far as I know, after you’ve traded for a slot you keep it until you trade it away again. As for a 3rd or 4th slot, that’s a no. A team is limited to a maximum of two DPs.
About transfer windows, well everyone talks about “transfer windows” but the official FIFA terminology is “registration window”. The issue as far as transfers go is that a player changing teams needs to be registered by his new team with the national federation as a member of their team and this can only happen during specified periods during the year. FIFA requirements state that you can have at most two registration periods, a primary one lasting around twelve weeks, and a secondary one lasting around four weeks. In Europe, the primary transfer window opens after the season ends and closes as the season’s beginning and the secondary window is normally in January. For MLS the primary window is in the beginning of the year, and the secondary window is in the summer.
by CarlosT on Jun 1, 2009 12:55 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs
The acronym CBA is used several times in this post. As the context was “CBA is being negotiated for 2010” I figure that the A= ‘agreement’ maybe the ‘C’ is contract or the B is for business. Anyway, not sure, any help?
by J Crow on Jun 2, 2009 10:04 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs
Hey, google helped me. Don’t worry.
CBA= collective bargaining agreement.
btw, thanks for the great web-site!
by J Crow on Jun 2, 2009 10:06 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs
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