MLS, Players Union Extend Bargaining Deadline To February 12

MLS and the MLSPU Thursday said that they have agreed to continue to negotiate through February 12, averting a players strike or league lockout that could have started Sunday when the CBA expires. The agreement will allow MLS players to attend training camp as the league and the union continue to bargain to try to reach an agreement, MLS and the players union said in a joint press release. The MLS season begins March 25. MLS Commissioner Don Garber said, "While we still have areas of disagreement, the talks have been constructive and both parties believe it makes sense to continue to work hard to reach agreement. This extension provides both MLS and the players the opportunity to continue our discussions while clubs are in training camps preparing for the 2010 MLS season." MLSPU Exec Dir Bob Foose in a statement said, "Both the Players Union and MLS have concluded that a new agreement will not be reached by February 1, but we have agreed to continue to talk and we will be meeting over the next two weeks to determine if a new agreement can be reached." The statement did not say if the two sides had agreed officially to extend the expiration of the CBA from January 31 to February 12, but it is expected that players will continue to work under the terms of the existing agreement. That CBA was the first in MLS and was agreed to five years ago. Unlike the NFL and NBA, MLS is not seeking concessions from players. The union in this negotiation is seeking to improve player rights, and key issues to the players include free agency and guaranteed contracts. Former NHLPA counsel and current NHL player agent Ian Pulver said on his Twitter account, "Sounds like progress being made if Players are reporting to camp. Lots of momentum" (Liz Mullen, SportsBusiness Journal). In Seattle, Jose Miguel Romero notes the "extra time to continue talks suggests an agreement might be close" (SEATTLE TIMES, 1/29).

WE CAN WORK IT OUT? SOCCER BY IVES' Ives Galarcep wrote "not much" should be made of the extension, because the union "never intended to strike on February 1 while MLS wasn't ready to pull the trigger on a lockout when it could simply extend the negotiations." With the MLS season "seven weeks away, there is some time to hammer out an agreement, but the clock is certainly ticking and neither side is interested in working under the old CBA" (SOCCERBYIVES.net, 1/28). SI's Grant Wahl said, "The real deadline is are they going to miss any regular-season games in Major League Soccer this season? That would be a crippling thing at any time, but especially during a World Cup year. Both sides realize ... they can't afford to have a work stoppage in which games are missed." Wahl: "This is part of the process of this league growing -- some teams now are actually making money -- and how do you grow smartly as a league" (SI.com, 1/28). Rapids D Drew Moor said, "Nobody wants any kind of break or anything. Everybody wants to play and it's important that we do play ... but at the same time, every side wants something" (DENVER POST, 1/29).

THE MAIN ISSUES: The MLSPU is seeking to "modify MLS's single-entity structure, in which all players sign with the league rather than individual teams." The union also "dislikes that most players lack guaranteed contracts" (AP, 1/28). The MLSPU in seeking guaranteed contracts wants the league to "fall in line with the majority of other leagues under the FIFA umbrella" (ESPNSOCCERNET.com, 1/29). SI's Grant Wahl said the players do not have a "heck of a lot of leverage." Wahl: "They lost their big court case against the MLS owners several years ago in which they were challenging the structure of the single-entity system. They even had the help of the NFL Players' Association in that long saga. At this point, the players can only threaten a work stoppage, so there's not a lot of leverage on that side and I think the owners realize that." He added there likely will be "some movement" on raising the minimum salary and guaranteeing more of the players' salaries. However, Wahl noted, "I don't think we're going to see full free agency and more guaranteed contracts as a result of this negotiation" (SI.com, 1/28).