This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Want another reminder as to how ridiculously short Major League Soccer's offseason is? The league announced Thursday that preseason for the 2016 season begins Friday, Jan. 22, 2016, which is a mere nine weeks from now.
For the two clubs who advance to the MLS Cup final, they'll have a 48-day window to go through the rigors of an offseason before needing to start right back up again. For Real Salt Lake and the three other MLS clubs part of the CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinals, they'll have just over four weeks to prepare for the knockout round.
RSL faces Mexican club Tigres UANL in a two-leg series, which starts in Mexico the last week of February.
The MLS 2015-2016 offseason calendar:
» Monday, Dec. 7: Lists of players eligible for free agency and Re-Entry Drafts to be announced.
» Tuesday, Dec. 8: Starting at 11 a.m., free agents may negotiate and the list of those eligible for the Waiver Draft will be made public.
» Wednesday, Dec. 9: The MLS Waiver Draft starts at 2:30 p.m.
» Thursday, Dec. 10: Starting at 3 p.m., clubs can no longer sign or trade their Re-Entry Draft eligible players
» Friday, Dec. 11: Stage 1 of the 2015 Re-Entry Draft starts at 1 p.m.
» Wednesday, Dec. 16: Starting at 9 a.m., clubs can no longer sign or trade Re-Entry Draft eligible players.
» Thursday, Dec. 17: Stage 2 of the 2015 Re-Entry Draft starts at 1 p.m.
» Jan. 7-12, 2016: The 2016 adidas MLS Player Combine in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.
» Jan. 14, 2016: The 2016 MLS SuperDraft in Baltimore, Md. (Real Salt Lake owns the No. 5 pick in the draft).
The league was vague — at best — regarding the newly-implemented free agent policy, which was a key negotiating point of the Collective Bargaining Agreements earlier this year. Free agency will be, as previously reported, for players 28 or older and with eight years of MLS service who are out of contract at their respective clubs or who have not had their options exercised.
That makes those players eligible and free to negotiate a new contract with any club in MLS, as well as their previous clubs. But with an added quirk that states, "subject to certain restrictions."
» MLS Waiver Draft:
This mechanism consists of players waived by their clubs and who aren't eligible for the Re-Entry Draft or free agency. As per the league, under contract players who are selected in the Waiver Draft will be automatically added to the drafting club's roster. Teams who claim an out-of-contract player in the Waiver Draft must issue, "a genuine offer to the selected player."
» MLS Re-Entry Draft:
Players at least 23-years-old and have a minimum of three years service in MLS whose options were not exercised by their clubs will be available. Also part of this mix will be players who are at least 25-years-old with a minimum of four years of MLS service who are out of contract and whose previous club did not re-sign at previous salary.
Free agents may choose to participate in the Re-Entry Draft as well.
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We're 25 days from the start of another offseason. Once the calendar hits Dec. 7, the days are guaranteed to become more hectic.
-Chris Kamrani
Twitter: @chriskamrani