Charlotte FC's Offseason Calendar: Expansion Draft, Free Agency, SuperDraft and more

By Brian Maurer

Brandt Bronico (far left), Ashley Westwood (8), Djibril Diani (back), and Tim Ream (far right) celebrating during the 2024 season (Photo courtesy of CJ Hellner/TopBin90)

Charlotte FC’s offseason is fully underway. They have announced their end-of-year roster decisions which were due November 27. With only the MLS Cup remaining in the 2024 season, the offseason calendar is fast approaching as teams reshape their rosters for 2025. Here are some key dates over the next couple of weeks for Charlotte fans to keep an eye on:

December 9 - Half-Day Trade Window

From 9 AM -1 PM, MLS clubs can trade with other MLS clubs.

December 11 - San Diego FC Expansion Draft

San Diego FC will get to choose five players from the other 29 MLS clubs in their 2024 Expansion Draft. All 29 MLS clubs can choose 12 players on their roster to protect.

Charlotte's 12 players will be announced on December 10. All other players on Charlotte’s roster will be eligible to be drafted by San Diego. 

Generation Adidas draft picks who take up supplemental roster spots 21-24 and homegrown players 25 and under are given automatic protections.

The automatically protected players for Charlotte FC are Nimfasha Berchimas, Brian Romero, Jack Neeley, Brandon Cambridge, and Hamady Diop.

December 12 - Free Agency Opens

MLS clubs can begin negotiating with eligible MLS free agents beginning at 1 PM on December 12. The official free agent list will be released on December 10.

MLS free agents are any players out of contract who are 24 or older and have at least five years of service in MLS.

December 12 - End-of-Year Waivers process begins

The end-of-year waivers process involves a draft using a reverse order of the 2024 season (including MLS playoff finish) with San Diego FC selecting 30th.

The official list of eligible players available for the end-of-year waivers will be released on December 10.

Players who are out of contract and do not meet the minimum requirements for the Re-Entry process or free agency will be eligible for the end-of-year waivers process.

December 13 - Re-Entry Draft Stage 1

The Re-Entry Draft is similar to the end-of-year waivers process. The difference is player eligibility. Players who are at least 22 years old and have at least one year of MLS service are eligible for the Re-Entry Draft.

The official list of eligible players for the Re-Entry Draft will be released on December 13.

December 19 - Re-Entry Draft Stage 2

Stage 2 is the same as Stage 1 and will include all players who were not selected by MLS clubs during Stage 1.

The official list of eligible players for the Re-Entry Draft will be released on December 19.

December 20 - MLS SuperDraft

The 26th MLS SuperDraft will take place on December 20. The draft is in reverse order of the 2024 MLS season and positioning also accounts for where teams finish in the MLS Cup playoffs, similar to the Re-Entry and end-of-year waivers process. The difference in the order for the SuperDraft is that San Diego will get the first pick in the SuperDraft.

Charlotte FC looks to be positioned for the 17th pick in the First Round.