What if the EFL had NFL style drafts?
Those that follow the NFL will know April is a big month for the game as it contains the NFL draft where all the best players from college football get selected to play in the big leagues.
All major American sports have college drafts.
It gives teams who have had a poor season previous an opportunity to select the best up and coming prospects.
This is a unique way of integrating players from youth level into senior level - but would this work in the English game?
I have debated this subject with football fans years over and the responses are varied; some think it would work, others think it's a crazy and stupid idea.
So how would it work?
Proposal #1
The newest team into the Football league get the first pick.
So hypothetically, let’s say Barrow had won promotion to the football league this season - they would then hold the prestigious first pick in the draft, meaning they can select the best player in youth football or they could trade this pick away to the for monetary value.
Proposal #2
There are 4 youth leagues to coincide with the 4 leagues of the English professional game (yes i know the National League is getting more professional teams and players, but for this we are working on the 92 of the football league).
This would then form youth leagues and youth teams that are not fully associated with the pro teams - for instance in the NFL Clemson and Ohio State are two of the best college teams currently, but pro teams have no affiliation to them except for the fact they have regular scouts and player analysis teams at their games.
So with these newly formed teams that would play in youth divisions across the country, players would be aged between 17-20 and once they reached the age of 21, they would then become eligible for the draft.
Players would also become eligible for draft after 2 seasons of competitive football, if they feel it's worth taking a shot at the draft. However the risk is that you don't get drafted by a club/team and therefore become free agents where any team can pick them up depending on contact offers.
So with this idea, Barrow pick first and Liverpool (who won the premier league) would pick last in the current youth crop of players.
Proposal #3
Clubs have youth academy squads in their clubs system and at the end of the current season, the Premier League teams can select to protect 4 prospects in their club who will be guaranteed to be with them the following season. The rest of their players would then go into the open football league draft which then gives the football league teams the ability to draft a player to become pro with them.
Let's go with this idea for a moment.
So we will take Liverpool & Manchester City in this example and I will be using their current U18’s and U23 academy squads.
Liverpool decide to protect:
Yasser Larouci, Neco Williams, Liam Miller and Paul Glatzel
Manchester City decide to protect:
Felix Nmecha, Claudio Gomes, Taylor Harwood-Bellis, D’Margio Wright-Phillips
These four players from both clubs are immune from the draft and can not be selected by teams.
However, all other players in their current academy classes that are eligible are available for selection by other teams.
The MLS utilises a draft system in which the team that finishes last gets the first pick.
The Draft Night in America for the NFL is a national event.
Whilst teams hold draft parties in their masses, fans of the game do similar albeit in their living rooms.
I would imagine that we would get the same excitement over here in the UK.
We have seen how the transfer deadlines have become stupidly massive with TV coverage.
If it happened; I can imagine there would be a good few hundred stood around at Holker Street in Barrow, eagerly awaiting them to make the first overall pick in the football league draft.
Barrow Manager Ian Evatt will be in a room at the ground with his club scouts and club chairman whilst they wait to be on the clock with their draft pick, they will have spent the last 10 months scouting the youth teams of the top clubs in England working out which players they need the most whether it be a full back or a striker that they bring in with this pick - or do they open it up to offers from other clubs?
However, they decided that as the new team in the football league, they want to select the best prospect in English football. So with the first pick in the 2020/21 football league draft, Barrow AFC select…
Hopefully, from reading this you have now thought about who you think would be listed as the #1 overall pick from the current crop of youth football prospects in England.
With the MLS making use of a similar system, it’s certainly an option to open up the future of youth football in England.
Should English Football Leagues implement an NFL style draft?
Have your say in the comments section below.
Article by: Shaun Rogers
Formatted by: Samuel Slaney
Thumbnail by: Samuel Slaney
Images interpreted from: Manchester City & MLS