'You aren't going to feed your family' - MLS told to urgently change their rules as Shaun Wright-Phillips claims talented American kids are being forced to retire from soccer at just 18 years old

American soccer has been enjoying another boom in the wake of Lionel Messi’s arrival at Inter Miami in the summer of 2023. The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner has drawn attention from a worldwide audience.

Questions are being asked of what happens when the iconic Argentine moves on, as he will turn 38 in June, while debate continues to rage regarding the merits of salary caps and The Designated Player Rule.

It has been suggested that those regulations are holding MLS back, as they prevent clubs from being able to compete on a level footing in the global transfer market. Rules that were intended to aid the development of home-grown players may actually be stunting that process.

That is the opinion of Wright-Phillips, with the former Manchester City, Chelsea and New York Red Bulls winger - speaking to GOAL via Lottoland, Football Betting - saying: “I said when I played over there that it was the rules holding everybody back.

“I saw a lot of kids that were very, very talented retire from football at 18 years old because their parents were telling them ‘it’s not a life, you aren’t going to be able to feed your family’. A lot of them stopped playing and carried on with college. The only way to change it is the ruling.”

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Wright-Phillips added when asked if MLS needs to consider implementing wholesale changes that benefit the American game as a whole: “I’ve always said they do, but they can still make it better for the young kids coming through and retaining good quality within America without necessarily doing that.

“The clubs over there definitely make enough money to pay their players better, so they have a life to play football and see it as a long-term career, rather than it being risky.”

MLS commissioner Don Garber committed to a new three-year contract in December 2024 that will keep him in his current role through 2027. It was he that oversaw the introduction of The Designated Player Rule, but more may need to be done in order to attract stars of the present while nurturing those of tomorrow.