MLS’ offseason just went kaboom.
Ahead of commissioner Don Garber’s annual State of the League address 24 hours before the MLS Cup final in Toronto, the league announced the introduction of new, discretionary targeted allocation money (TAM) for the 2018 and 2019 seasons.
Each club will continue to receive $1.2 million in TAM per year from the league, as was the case in 2017.
Starting next season, though, teams will also be allowed to spend another $2.8m in TAM that they fund themselves. It is the biggest indication yet that MLS is willing to sacrifice parity to give the league’s new class of ‘haves’ - including the likes of Toronto FC, New York City FC and Atlanta United - the chance to put their resources to use.