Homegrown Development: Extracting Value Both On & Off The Field.

It has been a good week on and off the field for showcasing young talent in Major League Soccer. Cavan Sullivan backed up his record setting debut performance for the Philadelphia Union [14 years, 293 days] with a goal and assist in the MLS Next All Star game. Atlanta United transferred 19yr old homegrown defender Caleb Wiley to Chelsea for a reported $11million fee. Clubs that are process driven and have the foresight to give opportunity to emerging talent are clearly reaping the rewards of the hard labor and dedication it takes to move these players through the club ecosystem. The pathway to pro is never linear and it take a huge amount of commitment to stick with the objective of playing young players. The relationship between Academy and Pro recruitment pathways within an organization has never been more important. The communication between these departments becomes critical in order to maximize the length of time needed within the first team environment in order to attract the attention of potential buyers. Chelsea are signing Caleb Wiley not only because he is a fantastic player with a high ceiling, but because he has played 77 MLS games [and over 2000 USL minutes – another indicator of readiness] at a consistent level. But when is the right time to promote these players into the first team environment? Commonly, it's when there is a change of manager or an interim wanting to make a point of giving opportunity. Maybe you are bottom of the league and recognize the need to retool for the following year - often an excuse to throw young players in at the deep end. The parity within MLS standings and the wafer thin line between success and failure due to the magnified effect on results doesn’t always lend well to promoting long term trust in an academy player. The league office recognizes this, by recently allowing teams to convert up to $3m in GAM per outgoing player sale provided all previous acquisition costs have be recouped on that transaction. This number is up from around $1.2m GAM on previous outgoing player transfers. This can be reinvested into an already strict salary cap budget and provide a huge incentive for on field competitive sustainability and improvement. There is a clear strategy here. Try to sell your homegrown player as young as possible and maximize immediate transfer value whilst generating a high sell on percentage. This gives the new club time build on your good work and potentially sell the player on for even more money. But when is the right time to sell? The sweet spot on transfer timing in MLS seems to be at the age of 18 or 19 and when the player has played around 50 MLS competitive games [Paredes 38, Pepi 59, Davies 65, Morris 105 some other examples]. Getting to 50 competitive games however can seem a long way off If your organization does not have clear objectives on homegrown development [at least 15% of total MLS minutes should be a base figure] and a strategy to promote from within. Those clubs will miss out long term and be left behind – both on and off the field.