MLS SuperDraft 2024 presented by adidas is set for Tuesday at 2 p.m. CT and Sporting Kansas City holds the 22nd overall pick in the first round, the 51st overall pick in the second round and the 80th overall pick in the third round.
MLS Season Pass on Apple TV will stream a live show hosted by Andrew Wiebe alongside Sacha Kljestan, Miguel Gallardo, Kaylyn Kyle, Devon Kerr and Matt Doyle. The show will feature live look-ins inside club draft headquarters, video feeds and interviews with draftees.
In addition, all three rounds will be available on the MLS SuperDraft Tracker with updates for each selection available in real time. The MLS SuperDraft order is set by taking the reverse order of the Supporters' Shield standings at the end of each MLS season, taking postseason performance into account.
Currently, Sporting has three players rostered who were selected in the MLS SuperDraft, including both of the club's selections in last year's draft and former No. 2 overall pick Khiry Shelton.
In advance of the MLS SuperDraft, technical staffs from every MLS club attended the fourth-annual adidas MLS College Showcase from Dec. 6-9 in Phoenix. The four-day scouting event showcased 44 of the top collegiate prospects in the nation via a series of training sessions, testing, interviews and match play.
On Friday, Major League Soccer announced the list of nearly 400 players eligible for selection (subject to change) in Tuesday's MLS SuperDraft. For the first time in MLS history, the list of players eligible for selection includes a broader range of promising young talent:
- Players who are currently collegiate sophomores, juniors and above.
- Previously, only players who were collegiate seniors and above, along with Generation adidas signings, were eligible for selection.
- College players will also still be able to sign Generation adidas contracts (freshmen and above).
Generation adidas is a joint program between MLS and adidas that sees a handful of top collegiate underclassmen and youth national team players signed by MLS to Generation adidas contracts and made available in the SuperDraft.
To provide Generation adidas players with the best professional environment, Generation adidas player salaries are not charged against an MLS team's annual salary budget, providing an added incentive for that club to develop the player. Eventually, GA players graduate to senior player contracts and their salaries are charged against a team's budget.
MLS clubs may draft players from a list of eligible players that may include:
- Players who are collegiate sophomores and above
- Generation adidas players
- Any former college player who departed college with remaining eligibility since the conclusion of the college season approximately one (1) year prior to the SuperDraft (i.e., since the conclusion of the 2022 college season) in order to compete as a professional in a league domestically (e.g., USL, NISA, CPL)
- Any other players specifically made available by the league (such as pre-signed college seniors or pre-signed internationals).
A player who is drafted by an MLS club and has remaining college eligibility will have the option to return to school and further their development, but will not be draft-eligible in the future.
A selected player who elects to go back to college or remains unsigned will have their SuperDraft Priority held by the drafting club for approximately two years following the SuperDraft, culminating on December 31 of the second year.
A player with remaining college eligibility who appears on the draft-eligible list but is not selected in the SuperDraft may return to school and can be nominated for the following year's draft.
