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U.S.-based agent Richard Motzkin said that the ongoing negotiations between MLS and the MLS Players Union on a new collective bargaining agreement are about fairness for those players who have helped grow the league. The two sides, accompanied by a federal mediator, are in Washington, D.C. trying to hammer out an agreement ahead of the start of the MLS season, which is slated to begin this Friday when Chicago travels to Los Angeles to face the Galaxy. The MLSPU is threatening to strike if the new CBA doesn't contain some type of free agency, while MLS is against allowing free agency in any form. #INSERT type:image caption:Herculez Gomez, who now plays for Puebla, still has his MLS rights held by Sporting Kansas City. END# Motzkin, an executive vice president with Wasserman Media Group, and who represents retired U.S. star Landon Donovan, among others, feels that the ability of MLS clubs to hold a player's rights even after their contract runs out is something that needs to change. Such an approach is a staple of MLS and its single-entity system, whereby players sign contracts with the league and competitive bidding for players already in MLS is avoided at all costs. "For the MLSPU, it is important that this CBA addresses the current system which allows MLS clubs to hold an individual players rights in perpetuity," said Motzkin via email. "When a player finishes their MLS contract, their current club is allowed to retain their rights forever by just offering an annual nominal increase. "For these players, many of whom have devoted years of service to MLS, they deserve the right to have some freedom of team choice once their contracts have expired, as well as an opportunity to earn something closer to their fair market value within the league." Players who exited the league when their contracts ran out are in the same boat. Herculez Gomez, who currently plays in Liga MX for Puebla, still has his MLS rights held by Sporting Kansas City, despite the fact that he last played for SKC in 2009. The situation is different for those players entering MLS for the first time from abroad, or who earned a transfer fee when they left MLS and now want to return. Such performers, like Toronto FC forward Jozy Altidore, have a greater say in where they end up, and tend to receive higher salaries. While details remain unclear, sources have told ESPNFC.com that the MLSPU has proposed that free agency be tied to a player's years of service in MLS or a set number of games. MLS has held firm however, with Real Salt Lake owner Dell Loy Hansen stating that a discussion on free agency was "one of those real waste-of-time conversations." He was later fined $150,000 by MLS for his comments. "No other professional sports league in the U.S. allows their teams to hold a player's rights in perpetuity, and I believe MLS is at a place where it likewise can and should allow the players some broader rights in this regard as part of a new CBA," said Motzkin. "Hopefully, the parties can. quickly figure out a compromise within the existing salary cap system that adequately addresses this issue since I believe a reasonable structure not only is possible, but it is the right and equitable thing for MLS to provide its longest-serving players and smart business for everyone."
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