What the new MLS schedule means for Colorado
More cold weather games? Maybe! Plus some early thoughts on the Rapids roster going into the offseason. And the NYT casts some shade at Victory Crossing.
A week ago, on November 13, MLS commissioner Don Garber announced that in 2027, the league will (at long last) flip-flop the calendar. MLS will leave behind the Spring-to-Fall schedule that has been in place since its inception in 1996 and go to ‘the European calendar’, with the season starting in Fall, running through the Winter, and ending in late Spring. This schedule switch has been discussed ad nauseam for at least a decade now.
And I’ve been on record for at least a decade as hating this potential (now actual) move. If you are a follower of the Colorado Rapids and have noticed in-stadium attendance over the years, it starts pretty slow in the cold early months of a Colorado Spring, and often struggles in Fall. Additionally, before the details of exact timing had been revealed, it was my assumption that the calendar would resemble that of Germany, which takes a break for between four and six weeks from mid December through January. That would make for potentially two full months of freezing-cold games on the frozen tundra of Commerce City.
But, when the details were revealed … I didn’t hate this as much as I’d thought I would.
According to Paul Tenorio’s reporting in The Athletic,
A winter break would take place in December and January. Games would likely pause from around the second week in December through the first or third week in February.
That means that weather-wise, this is effectively an addition of perhaps two or three cold home games: one in December, two in February. Colorado has gotten pretty close to that before. MLS Cup 2010 took place on November 21, 2010 in Toronto. The Rapids opened their 2018 and 2025 seasons with Concacaf matches in February. Yeah, those aren’t fun. I was at both the 2018 and 2025 matches, and both rank in the top eight of coldest MLS matches played in history.
However, with the robust winter break MLS has announced, the change will be pretty minor. Mostly, the league is simply reversing the start and end times, and adding a June-to-mid-July break as well: the new calendar is only actually a small increase in cold weather games.
There are three other impacts on the Rapids. One is bad, the other two are good.
The bad news: there’s no world in which MLS will be playing on July 4. That means the Rapids fireworks extravaganza– a tradition that stretches back to the team’s inaugural season – is probably gone. For sure that’s a bummer, but potentially it can be an opportunity for the ‘Pids. July 4 will likely be pre-season for MLS teams, and I can envision a sold-out exhibition match against a team like UNAL Tigres, River Plate, Wrexham United, or another team.1 Still, that midseason July 4 game at DSGP was always a hoot, and if it goes away forever it’d be a shame.
On the upside, Colorado Rapids now can breathe a little easier about competing directly with the NWSL team, Denver Summit FC. The NWSL schedule runs March to November, through the Summer, and so the two leagues beginning and ending at different times should help keep soccer fans interested in both teams year round, rather than disgruntled Rapids fans and local soccer noobs naturally gravitating every Spring to the Summit. That said, the Rapids will still need to work to hold on to their fans attention. In the old days, Rapids-casuals would abandon the team every September as the NFL season got going. Now the Rapids marketing team have to fight for attention against the Broncos every Fall, and then hang on for dear life if the team is in the doldrums in March to keep people from heading to Summit games. Still, I think the schedule flip will be ok for gate receipts.
The other good thing about switching the calendar is that MLS and most European leagues will have the same transfer windows: a midseason window in January, and an offseason one from June to August. That’s good for teams, for GMs, for players, and for football. European players no longer have to depart a team in Germany, Spain, or Denmark at the end of their season and join an MLS team that’s already halfway into their year - which perhaps means their bodies will get a little more time to rest and recuperate. General managers2 will have an easier time reshaping their clubs as the globally available player pool will be expanded and easier to discern.
I guess on the whole what I’m saying is: I’m ok with this move. I didn’t find it necessary, but it isn’t the end of the world, either.
Maybe my feeling is, after all the years of talk, the practical realities are much ado about nothing. I don’t see the big deal of a league that plays 9 months a year and effectively changes which months they AREN’T playing. I don’t actually think the synchronized transfer window matters that much. I am bummed that there might be two or three more cold weather games with lousy attendance in Commerce City, but it’s not like I’m worried about whether poor Josh Kroenke will be missing a meal because of it.
I do think competing against Major League Baseball in the summer for casual fans is easier than competing in Fall and Winter with a crowded sports landscape that includes the NFL, NBA, and NHL. But I also think 30 years on, MLS as a league stands on its own.
It’s probably mostly good for MLS. For the 2026 season, there’s no changes ahead. The mild headache is that in order to flop the schedules, the 2027 ‘season’ will be a ‘sprint season’ of 14 games plus playoffs from February to May. It’s basically the Covid-shortened 2020 season all over again, this time with fans. I hate when sports have to append an asterisk to a stat or a season, and the 2027 MLS Champs are unfortunately going to be the 2027 MLS Champs*.
To be honest, that might be the best opportunity the Colorado Rapids will have this decade to get a trophy.
Roster Moves, Part I - Subtractions
The hokey-pokey of the MLS roster goes:
Options Declined, Players Waived
Free Agents declared
Re-entry draft part 1 and part 2
MLS SuperDraft; Homegrown signings announced
Actually interesting news about new signings
Matt and I always starve for news in November and December as the roster gets smaller, then spend January and February freaking out about EVERY. NEW. PLAYER. Even the Kip Colvey and Sidnei Tavares-type signings.
From first glance, Colorado doesn’t have as much roster flexibility as one would want for a team that finished 11th - there are only five players on the 18-man Senior Roster with expiring contracts, and another six on the Supplemental Roster.3
But even though there aren’t a whole lot of open roster spots to bring in new players to insert into the starting lineup, there will be some money to make some moves. My spreadsheet suggests Colorado go into 2026 with $3.5 million in available money to spend on the roster, including Cap space, GAM, and TAM. Plus, there’s an open Designated Player slot, and LOTS of international slots to either occupy or sell off: only Conor Ronan and Daouda Amadou are internationals. That said, the moves won’t happen until later.
But here are my predictions for players contracts and departures to be announced on or before November 26.
Calvin Harris - PREDICTION: Renewed for 2026, Club option for 2027.
Harris had a Goals Added of 0.96 in 2025, third-best on the team. He also had 5 goals, 0 assists, on a salary of just $152,000. He’s a proper winger on a team that doesn’t really have any other proven wingers.4 The only reason he leaves is if someone makes an offer for him that Pádraig Smith can’t refuse.
Andreas Maxsø - PREDICTION: Out of contract, departs for Denmark.
The Rapids already announced at the end-of-year presser that Maxsø was moving on. He wasn’t great, and his $1.4 million salary in 2025 was a hefty chunk of change. Which can now be spent on any number of positions that need upgrades, which is pretty much all of them except perhaps goalkeeper.
Ollie Larraz - PREDICTION: Out of contract, off to Europe.
Ollie was a solid midfielder, maybe a bit underwhelming. His -0.67 Overall G+ could be about him, or it could be about the team around him being kinda meh. It was mentioned that Larraz wants to test the waters in Europe. If he really wants to play abroad, I imagine he might garner interest with a midtable Scottish team or a League One side. Would that, and the sorta meh salary those teams can send, be worth it for a transatlantic move? I wouldn’t do it, but we’ll see how Ollie feels.
Michael Edwards - PREDICTION: Out of contract, signs in USL in 2026.
Mike’s been on my Rapids roster spreadsheets since 2021. You know who else was on the 2021 roster? Will Vint, and Matt Hundley, and Phillip Mayaka, and Jeremy Kelly. None of those guys panned out. The Rapids kept hanging on to Edwards hoping he’d develop and breakthrough. At the age of 24, Edwards was mostly a bench player for USL-C’s Charleston Battery in 2025. I think he’ll make a permanent home in USL going forward.
Ian Murphy - PREDICTION: Club option not picked up.
Murphy played 1164 minutes on the backline for Colorado in 2025 while earning $447,500. You can find a backup CB that can help you miss the playoffs for a lot less than half-a-million.
Jackson Travis - PREDICTION: Option picked up for 2026.
Travis’ defense leaves much to be desired. But he’s 19, he’s fast, he plays a position where there just aren’t a lot domestic players, and he costs just $106,500 a year. You absolutely pick that contract up. Or extend/renegotiate it through 2028.
Darren Yapi - PREDICTION: Signs new contract through 2028, Club Option for 2029.
Homegrown Yapi had 8 goals, 2 assists in 17 starts and 12 appearances coming off the bench. He was paid just $114,833. Yapi is under 22 and is eligible to be a U22 ‘Young Money’ player, which means that his salary cap charge is $200,000. Anything over that is just Kroenke cash that doesn’t affect the clubs ability to sign other players. I expect the Rapids will pay him between $800K and $1.4 mil to keep him around.
Nico Hansen - PREDICTION: Option picked up for 2026.
Backup goalkeeper Nico Hansen was, in my opinion, better than Zack Steffen. There, I said it. I think the Rapids hang onto him till Zack’s deal expires at the end of 2026 and then install him as the new #1. But I say that because that’s what I’d do. The Rapids, as we know, don’t always do what I think they should.
Sam Bassett - PREDICTION: Club Option exercised.
You keep Cole’s brother for the paltry sum of $81,000 because A) he might continue to improve and become a solid starter in MLS and B) you really don’t want to piss off Cole Bassett in order to save the equivalent of the take at the Marco’s Pizza and the Dippin’ Dots stands for the month of April.
Nate Jones - PREDICTION: Club Option not exercised.
Jones started 13 games on loan with the Las Vegas Lights. Their 50 Goals Against was among the worst in USL. Nate’s already 24 years old, so I don’t think the Rapids think he’s worth a roster spot for next year. As my grandmother would say, ‘He should live and be well.’ Which was really code for ‘He should fuck off and I don’t really care what happens to him.’ But it was the nice polite way to say that.
If it all goes the way I see it, and based on the quality of guys on the roster, here is my first draft of a depth chart going into 2026. I’ll be wrong on some of this stuff: some guys will get resigned/retained that I thought were toast; Pádraig will trade two guys I was sure would be here. This roster doesn’t include Rafa Navarro, who pundits think will be sold back to a Brazilian club, or Reggie Cannon, who I think the Rapids should offload at a fire-sale price or cut outright. But both might be back and starting for the 2026 Rapids.5
Eight open spots? Let’s go shopping!
Oh yeah. Also: we need a coach. Someone should get right on that.
…
‘We made the New York Times!’ Yeah, but not in a good way
The paper of record did a hopeful piece focused on Rhode Island FC’s gorgeous new stadium entitled ‘Can Soccer Stadiums Revitalize American Cities?’ Very interesting; all about the real estate and business end of constructing a new stadium.
However, the author, Danielle McLean, cast some shade in the direction of KSE, writing
At least 12 professional soccer-specific stadium projects that have been completed since 2000 have included mixed-use development with housing as part of the proposal. None have been fully realized, but five have been partially completed.
…
None of the 600,000 square feet designated for housing, retail, bars, restaurants and commercial space as part of the Colorado Rapids’ $183 million stadium project in Commerce City, Colorado, for instance, has yet been realized. The stadium opened in 2007.
The Rapids’ ownership group is still exploring mixed-use possibilities with city leaders, while evaluating its operations and the land around the stadium, Mike Neary, the group’s executive vice president of business operations and real estate, said in a statement.
Yeah, right Mike. The Rapids are ‘still exploring mixed-use possibilities’ for Victory Crossing like I’m ‘still considering becoming a prima ballerina’ or like Liberace was ‘still looking for the right girl to settle down with.’ It’s been almost 20 fucking years. Victory Crossing is not ‘zombie’ dead – it’s ‘in an urn on the mantle in ashes’ dead. I’m embarrassed the club is still subjecting the fan base to the charade that we’ll ever get to head to a restaurant before the game, a bar after the game, and then crash at our two-bedroom ‘Victory Crossing’ apartment Saturday night before heading back to the Monday through Friday grind as chief brain surgeon at the Anschutz Medical Campus on Monday. Come to think of it, it’s as likely I’ll become a brain surgeon as Victory Crossing ever gets built.
The Denver suburbs keep growing around Dick’s at an increasing rate - Beeler Park to the east, Northfield to the south, and more new construction out by Peña Blvd - and yet the empty dirt and tumbleweed expanses around the stadium remain the territory of nothing more than prairie dogs and broken dreams. At the rate things are going, DJT will open up the Rocky Mountain Arsenal Refuge to condos, or oil drilling, before Josh and Stan even let a pair of taco trucks park regularly across from 6000 Victory Way in Commerce City as part of a ‘mixed-use commercial space’. What a pity.
Bringing back Arsenal would also be wonderful (they played July 15, 2019), but July 4 is a bit early to get an EPL team. But you never know…
General managers are called ‘Sporting Directors’ at many clubs. Because the United States just HAS to conform to European snobbery.
The list on my bluesky skeet has 10 players listed. I don’t actually know the status of Daouda Amadou’s contract.
If you say ‘Alexis Manyoma’ I will reply ‘PROVEN wingers.’
That’d be a mistake.