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Opinion: It’s time to move on from the MLS SuperDraft

By Jordan Jacobsen

13 January 2017: Abu Danladi (UCLA) (GHA) (Generation Adidas) was select
13 January 2017: Abu Danladi (UCLA) (GHA) (Generation Adidas) was select /
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FOXBOROUGH, MA – OCTOBER 15: New York City FC midfielder Jack Harrison (11) dribbles the ball during a match between the New England Revolution and New York City FC on October 15, 2017, at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts. The Revolution defeated NYCFC 2-1. (Photo by Fred Kfoury III/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
FOXBOROUGH, MA – OCTOBER 15: New York City FC midfielder Jack Harrison (11) dribbles the ball during a match between the New England Revolution and New York City FC on October 15, 2017, at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts. The Revolution defeated NYCFC 2-1. (Photo by Fred Kfoury III/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

SuperDraft Fallout

While there are obviously some exceptions, most SuperDraft players in recent years have had to earn their way into first teams like the previously mentioned Connor Sparrow did in USL. The gap between Major League Soccer and the NCAA is more like a giant chasm, and a similar talent gap exists between the NCAA and second division United Soccer League, where most SuperDraft picks are ending up.

The exceptions include the likes of Cyle Larin, Jack Harrison, and Andre Blake among others, who all fell through the cracks somewhere along the lines and used the NCAA as a launching pad into professional careers in MLS; but even in drafts as recent as 2014, only 16 of the 38 players selected in the first two rounds remain on MLS rosters. Most of those 16 players have seen significant time in USL and are no longer with the MLS team that drafted them. All while a large handful of the 38 players not on MLS rosters are out of professional soccer altogether.

The trend is actually worse in the more recent 2015 Draft, where only 15 of 42 players picked in the first two rounds are with MLS clubs currently. The heavy reliance on USL is prevalent for the majority of players picked, and once again several of them have yet to play professionally again after their initial contract.

With time, the 2016 and 2017 class will likely tell a similar story. Philadelphia Union’s reserve side, Bethlehem Steel, will likely rely heavily on four of the first six picks taken in the 2016 draft ahead of the 2018 USL season, as the four of them are either Union depth players who played heavily for the Steel last year or new players who have signed with the Steel outright this offseason.

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