Miguel Ibarra is a rising young star in the American soccer landscape. The 24-year-old was put on the map with multiple recent call ups to the US National Team. He made his first start in a recent friendly against Panama, showing speed and a good work rate. While still an unfinished product, he is one of the many young stars to gain respect in Jurgen Klinsmann‘s recent experiments with the USMNT. He also one of the faces of Minnesota United FC and the NASL. Ibarra made 27 appearances for The Loons last year, scoring 10 goals.
The main criticism one could put on Ibarra is his level of competition. We all know Klinsmann prefers the European leagues to MLS and thus is willing to give a German-American academy product from the Bundesliga a shot, even if the kid doesn’t get first team minutes. He’s been on the record about preferring the Yanks Abroad go elsewhere prior to falling back on the safe and financially-lucrative options in MLS. Even if Klinsmann doesn’t think much of MLS at times, he surely thinks it’s better than the NASL or USL. Ibarra however had moments against Panama that warrant further consideration going forward. Klinsmann certainly thinks so.
That said, if Ibarra is tearing it up in NASL and is getting the occasional USMNT call up, then there must be some interest from MLS and maybe a foreign team or two. Ibarra was selected by the Portland Timbers in the second round (27th overall) in the 2012 MLS Supplemental Draft. He was never signed by the MLS side, and signed with Minnesota United right before the start of the 2012 season. He was an NASL Best XI in 2013 and 2014, winning the Golden Ball this past season.
As Portland did not make him an offer, they do not have right of first refusal. Rumor has it the New York Red Bulls have a discovery claim on him, but there’s been no official statement from the club, the league, or Ibarra. The Loons re-signed him last year and he is under contract for the next two seasons.
How then does an MLS team acquire the winger’s rights?
“Ibarra is a US international, thus he goes through allocation” you say. Ah, but the Allocation Ranking is specified for a US international player who “signs with MLS after playing abroad, or a former MLS player who returns to the League after having gone abroad for a transfer fee.” Ibarra never signed with MLS. Portland did not receive a transfer fee from Minnesota. The NASL is a domestic league.
At present, there is no rule stipulated by the league for a US internationals who play domestically outside of MLS (NASL, USL, etc.). Other than a discovery claim then, how does a player’s rights get determined? This has never been an issue in the past due to lack of interest in players from the lower leagues due to quality. But now there’s a player everyone has their eyes on. Eventually Ibarra will outgrow NASL and will want to challenge himself at a higher level. If he looks to MLS, what happens?
The little detail is the wrinkle that has created the curious case of Miguel Ibarra.
Does he go through allocation? Is there a second allocation order for these players separate of the foreign league player allocation order? Or, is the discovery claim route the way to go? It would make MLS teams choose their discovery claims more carefully. We could just institute free agency, then Ibarra could negotiate with teams as he likes.
Beyond his potential move to MLS, this is a potential loop-hole. If Ibarra doesn’t force some controversial executive decision by the league office, another player eventually will.
If any league official is reading this, I suggest bringing this up to Commissioner Don Garber the next time you see him. Furthermore, I’d love to hear what you all come up with, preferably before said rules are implemented for the first time. This would be an excellent way to prevent any bad PR that could come from the inevitable #IbarraGate or an equivalent. It would be a great show of good faith in a move towards a more comprehensive and transparent MLS.
Your move, Commissioner.
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