| 2026 MLS SuperDraft | |
|---|---|
| General information | |
| Sport | Soccer |
| Date | December 18, 2025 |
| Network | MLS Season Pass |
| Overview | |
| 90 total selections in 3 rounds | |
| League | Major League Soccer |
| Teams | 30 |
The 2026 MLS SuperDraft will be the 26th edition of the MLS SuperDraft, a sports draft to select amateur, usually collegiate, soccer players that are not affiliated with an MLS club, or college soccer players that had their homegrown player rights relinquished by their parent MLS club. The draft will be held on December 18, 2025, marking the fourth year in a row that the draft was held in December. Despite the draft being held in 2025, the draft retained the 2026 branding.[1]
Format
[edit]Historically, the MLS SuperDraft has closely resembled that of the NFL Draft:
- Any expansion teams receive the first picks. There are no expansion teams this year, so the last-place MLS team will receive the first pick
- Non-playoff clubs receive the next picks in reverse order of prior season finish.
- Teams that made the MLS Cup playoffs are then ordered by which round of the playoffs they are eliminated.
- The winners of the MLS Cup are given the last selection, and the losers the penultimate selection.
Trades involving draft picks
[edit]First round
[edit]- Philadelphia Union → Colorado Rapids. Colorado Rapids acquired the natural first and third round picks in the 2025 MLS Super Draft and the natural first, second and third round in the 2026 and 2027 MLS SuperDrafts from Philadelphia Union in exchange for $125,000 in 2025 GAM, $125,000 in 2026 GAM, $100,000 in 2027 GAM and $250,000 in conditional GAM.[2]
Second round
[edit]- Inter Miami → Los Angeles FC. Los Angeles FC acquired the natural first round pick in the 2025 MLS SuperDraft from Inter Miami in exchange for $50,000 in 2025 GAM and their own natural second-round pick in the 2026 MLS SuperDraft.[3]
- New York Red Bulls → Real Salt Lake. Real Salt Lake acquired Elias Manoel, all three natural picks in the 2025 MLS SuperDraft and the 2026 MLS SuperDraft natural second round pick from New York Red Bulls in exchange for $550,000 in 2025 GAM and $150,000 in 2026 GAM.[4]
Third round
[edit]- Philadelphia Union → Colorado Rapids. Colorado Rapids acquired the natural first and third round picks in the 2025 MLS Super Draft and the natural first, second and third round in the 2026 and 2027 MLS SuperDrafts from Philadelphia Union in exchange for $125,000 in 2025 GAM, $125,000 in 2026 GAM, $100,000 in 2027 GAM and $250,000 in conditional GAM.[2]
References
[edit]- ^ "MLS Announces Calendar of 2024-25 Offseason Roster Building Events". MLSsoccer.com. October 2, 2025. Retrieved October 5, 2025.
- ^ a b "Colorado Rapids acquire SuperDraft selections from Philadelphia Union". MLSsoccer.com. December 10, 2024.
- ^ @LAFC (December 20, 2024). "📝 #LAFC acquires the 22nd pick in the 2025 @MLS SuperDraft from @InterMiamiCF in exchange for $50K in 2025 GAM and LAFC's natural second-round selection in 2026" (Tweet). Retrieved December 20, 2024 – via Twitter.
- ^ "Real Salt Lake Acquire New York Red Bulls FW Elias Manoel and Four MLS Superdraft Picks in Exchange for $700,000 in General Allocation Money". RSL.com. December 20, 2024. Retrieved December 20, 2024.
Template:2026 MLS season by team Template:2026 in American men's soccer