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New York, - David Beckham's Inter Miami and fellow newcomer Nashville will pluck talent from Major League Soccer rivals in a November expansion draft, the league announced Thursday.
The MLS Expansion Priority Draft will be staged on October 6, the final day of the league's regular season, with a coin flip to decide whether Miami or Nashville makes the first pick in the MLS Expansion Draft on November 19.
The loser will have the first choice among new young talent in the 2020 MLS Draft and the new clubs will alternate the better positions in other roster-building opportunities such as waiver selection order when players are released.
Former England star Beckham, whose 2007 deal to join the Los Angeles Galaxy included rights to purchase an MLS expansion club at a discount, will finally see his long-delayed squad take the field in 2020.
Miami and Nashville will be the 25th and 26th teams in the North American elite league with Austin, Texas, and St. Louis to be added later and other markets in the hunt for clubs.
Expansion draft picks, up to five each for Miami and Nashville, are critical choices where new clubs can make crucial additions to the roster from the ranks of experienced MLS players on other teams.
Each MLS team can protect up to 12 players on its roster with a final list of available talent to be determined on November 16.
Five teams who lost players to 2019 newcomer FC Cincinnati in last year's expansion draft -- DC United, Vancouver Whitecaps, FC Dallas, Houston Dynamo and New York Red Bulls -- are exempt this time around.
