The new CBA in brief ...

• by Ridge Mahoney  @ridgemax, Mar 22, 2010

[MLS] While the MLS Board of Governors and MLS Players Union must ratify the new collective bargaining agreement before they will announce its details, here are some of the key provisions ...

Salary Cap:
For 2010, the salary cap will be $2.55 million per team (it was $2.32 million in 2009). It will increase at a basic five percent per year.

Minimum Salary:
For 2010, the minimum salary for all players is $40,000 ($34,000 in 2009). Each will increase at a basic five percent per year, though for older players the minimum will be greater.

Guaranteed Contracts:
Players 24 years old with three or more MLS seasons of experience get the fourth year of their contract (and all years in subsequent contracts) guaranteed. (The July 1 contract guarantee date is excised from standard contracts. For players who qualify, their contracts are guaranteed for that year once their options are exercised, except in extreme circumstances.)
 
Options:
For players 25 years old with at least four MLS seasons of experience, there will be only two years of unilateral options in their contracts, rather than three. Subsequent option years are mutual options.
 
Players who are out of contract or whose options are declined:
They will go into a special draft, details to be decided of how teams or players are "ranked" and how the process will function.