For most sports franchises, the two most exciting dates on the calendar are the championship game and draft day. With MLS moving more toward the youth academy system of talent development used in the English Premier League and others like it, the super draft may soon be a thing of the past.
For now though, 2015’s draft was still front and center in the growing league. The creation of two new expansion teams, Orlando City SC and New York City FC, in addition to the recent restructuring of Chivas USA, combined to create higher than usual demand for the available young players.
The Super Draft structure is similar to drafts in other American sports and the players are still attending university at the time of the selection, although many are also attached to USL (United Soccer League) teams as well.
Orlando City SC was granted the first pick in a coin toss and selected Canadian national team regular and UConn Huskies star forward Cyle Larin. The second overall pick — forward Khiry Shelton — chosen by New York City FC has been playing for Oregon State since 2011, and he has even made several appearances for the US Men’s National team.
When Shelton begins training with his new teammates, he will join the likes of former Chelsea hero Frank Lampard, and David Villa of Barcelona fame.
Local favorites Portland Timbers FC acquired the fifth overall pick in the first round as a part of a trade deal with the Colorado Rapids for Portland native Danny Mwanga (forward).
After a disappointing 2014 campaign plagued by injuries and poor results, the Timbers looked to make waves in the off-season with their highest selection seed since 2011.
Timbers’ first pick, Nick Besler (midfield), was a regular starter of Norte Dame’s 2013 national championship team and was named to the 2014 NCAA All-American team.
With an eye for bolstering all areas of play, the Timbers also selected University of Washington’s Andy Thoma (defender), Southern Illinois’ Christian Volesky (forward), and Virginia Commonwealth’s Kharlton Belmar (forward).
With the first and second rounds of the Super Draft completed in Philadelphia, and the third and fourth rounds set to occur via conference call on Jan. 20, there is still plenty of room for new players to make their entrance into America’s premier soccer system.
The question for the MLS moving forward though is whether or not the Super Draft is really the best approach.
Instituted in 2000, the draft was an attempt to streamline the development of America’s underserved soccer talent. The league has benefited as the draft has grown alongside it, but the US Men’s National team has not benefited much and the MLS is still considered by many to be a farm league on the international scene.
There has been talk of switching over to a strictly academy style system with a draft becoming a secondary approach. For example, in England players can be selected to play in a club academy from a very young age (as young as 9). This allows the coaches of both major clubs and international teams to observe players as they develop, and it means that a wider scope of talent can be recognized and nurtured to greatness.
However, this system is greatly aided by the fact that England has roughly the same land area as Washington State. Even if an academy on the other side of the country is looking to sign a player, the transportation is still achievable. Frequently, younger players in America just don’t have access to the same level of development programs.
Regardless of where you fall on the draft, however, you can look forward to great season of MLS in 2015. The strength of the players and size of the draft pool this year indicates that soccer’s participation and fan bases are growing in America, and with the larger fan base comes a bigger group of people willing to help youth players achieve their dreams of success.
