MLS, Players Union reach agreement on new CBA
Major League Soccer and the league's players union have reached an agreement on a new collective bargaining agreement, according to the league.
• STRAUS: What is at stake in MLS' CBA negotiations?
Below is a statement from commissioner Don Garber on the new five-year agreement, which will be in effect until 2019 :
The Orlando Sentinel reports that the deal will allow a form of free agency for players aged 28 and older who have at least eight years of experience in the league. In those cases, there will be caps on how much a player may increase his salary. The agreement will also see the league's minimum salary rise to $60,000 per year, up from $37,000. MLS players had consistently threatened to strike if free agency, or some version of it, was not included in the new CBA.
Fox Sports' Julie Stewart-Binks first Tweeted the news that the league and players had reached a tentative agreement, which Real Salt Lake goalkeeper Nick Rimando all but confirmed in a Tweet of his own.
[tweet=https://twitter.com/NickRimando/status/573280363008671744]
Players chimed in with messages before the official announcement to indicate a deal is done.
[tweet=https://twitter.com/DaxMcCarty11/status/573286181598846976]
[tweet=https://twitter.com/ClintIrwin/status/573285915772235776]
[tweet=https://twitter.com/Krowe210/status/573286306576523264]
With a new CBA agreement in place, the MLS season will kick off this Friday as the Chicago Fire pays visit to the Los Angeles Galaxy at 10 p.m. ET.
