MLS and Players have reached a new agreement to green light the 2020 season
The 2020 MLS campaign should resume late June or early July at Orlando, Florida with a proposed format of the 26 teams being divided in 6 groups.
After months of negotiations between the Major League Soccer (MLS) and the MLS Player Association, on 3 June they have reached a new collective bargaining agreement. With this new deal the 2020 season can resume, most likely in Orlando, Florida, and it will last until 2025, confirmed MLS commissioner Don Garber during a video conference call with the media.
With this new approval by the MLSPA the league avoids a lockout which would be catastrophic for the economy amid the coronavirus pandemic in the United States. Now according to reports the season could resume as early as 24 June and the players have agreed to play a tournament in Orlando while players have to remain quarantined at the Disney World resort and tested regularly for Covid-19.
"MLS Players today ratified a new collective bargaining agreement, which will run through the 2025 season. Today's vote also finalizes a plan to resume the 2020 season and provides players with certainty for the months ahead. It allows our members to move forward and continue to compete in the game they love,” the MLSPA said in a statement.
The MLS has been suspended due to the outbreak in the country since 12 March and with the green light of the deal the 26 teams for the 2020 campaign are expected to fly to the Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World in three weeks.
Players message to the world
In the same statement that confirmed the new deal with the MLS, the players sent a deep message to the current situation of the world with the coronavirus pandemic killing thousands of people and the death of George Floyd by three police officers in Minneapolis.
"We recognize that we are all moving forward, as players, as fans, as societies, as a world, into a future that looks much different than the one we envisioned a few months ago. There are problems we face collectively that are both more urgent, and more important, than competing on the field…
...we are grieving, we are fed up, we expect change, and we expect action. This change won't come on the field, but it will come partly through the force and determination of all who seek justice and equality. We hope our return to the field will allow fans a momentary release and a semblance of normalcy…
...we are committed as a group to doing all that we can -- both as leaders in our sport as well as leaders in our communities, to help carry our countries, our communities, our league, and our sport forward,” added the MLSPA statement.