# Designated Player Rule

The Designated Player Rule, nicknamed the Beckham Rule, allows Major League Soccer franchises to sign up to three players that would be considered outside their salary cap (either by offering the player higher wages or by paying a transfer fee for the player). The rule, which was adopted ahead of the 2007 MLS season, enables teams to compete for star players in the international football market. The rule is one of two mechanisms by which MLS teams may exceed their salary cap, the other being allocation money. As of December 2019, there have been 209 Designated Players in league history.
The rule is informally named after David Beckham, in anticipation of MLS teams signing lucrative deals with internationally recognized players, after Beckham entered into negotiations to join the league. Beckham was the first player signed under this rule, signing a five-year contract with the Los Angeles Galaxy in 2007 with a guaranteed annual salary of $6.5 million.

## History

The team salary cap was estimated to be around US$1.9 million in 2006, was $2.1 million in 2007, and was raised to $2.3 million for the 2008 season. As part of the 2010 Collective Bargaining Agreement between MLS and the MLS Players' Union, the 2010 salary cap was $2.55 million, with an automatic five percent increase each year until the expiration of the agreement at the end of the 2014 season.
Under the 2007 rule:
* The rule expires at the end of the 2009 season, and must be renewed then or allowed to lapse.
* For each Designated Player, $400,000 of his salary is charged to the salary cap and paid by the league, with any remaining salary being paid by the team's owner. This value was increased for the 2009 season to $415,000.
* Prior to the 2007 season, there were three players whose salary exceeded $400,000. These players were Landon Donovan, Carlos Ruiz, and Eddie Johnson. According to the rule, these players were grandfathered in for the 2007 season, and the exemption was extended after the 2007 season, with the league planning to review the issue at a future date. It was possible that the league would be required to renegotiate these players' contracts or consider them Designated Players. However, prior to the start of the 2008 season, Johnson moved to Fulham of the Premier League, while following Dwayne De Rosario's signing by Toronto FC in January 2009, Ruiz was released by the club and left MLS to play for Olimpia Asunción. This left Donovan as the lone player whose 2009 salary remained grandfathered under the exemption provision. However, there were several more players whose guaranteed salary exceeded the Designated Player amount, but whose salary cap expense was actually lower than their true salary due to the allocation rule. These players include Shalrie Joseph ($450,000), Christian Gomez ($430,000), Dwayne De Rosario ($425,750), and Taylor Twellman ($420,000).
* Each team initially had one Designated Player spot, but could trade their Designated Spot to another team; teams were allowed a maximum of two Designated Players.
* Only $325,000 of a team's second Designated Player counted against the salary cap, which was increased to $335,000 in 2009.
The 2010 changes:
* The rule has no expiration date.
* For each Designated Player, $335,000 of his salary is charged to the salary cap and paid by the league ($167,500 for DP players joining during the MLS summer transfer window), with any remaining salary being paid by the team's owner. This amount is halved for Designated Players signed in the middle of the season. The salary cap value of Designated Players can also be reduced using allocation money. Finally, teams whose Designated Players transfer abroad in the middle of a season can recoup part of the Designated Players' salary cap value.
* Landon Donovan is no longer grandfathered into the rule and must be considered a Designated Player.
* Each team is allowed two Designated Player spots, and they can no longer trade their Designated Player spots. The New York Red Bulls will receive $70,000 in allocation money in return for the nullification of their 2007 trade with Chivas USA for an additional Designated Player spot. This means that both New York and Chivas USA will have two Designated Player spots for the 2010 season.
* Teams can pay a $250,000 "luxury tax" for the right to sign a third Designated Player. This $250,000 would be distributed equally to all MLS teams that have not signed a third Designated Player in the form of allocation money.
The 2012 changes:
Starting with the 2012 season, the rule was changed with respect to younger players. MLS announced the changes in August 2011 after clubs expressed concern about signing young international players with no guarantees that they would develop into stars.
* Designated Players over the age of 23 will carry a salary budget charge of $350,000, unless the player joins his club in the middle of the season, in which case his budget charge will be $175,000.
* Designated Players 21–23 years old count as $200,000 against the club's salary budget.
* Designated Players 20 years old or younger count as $150,000 against the club's salary budget.
* The budget charge for the midseason signing of a young Designated Player (23 years old and younger) is $150,000 and this amount cannot be lowered with allocation funds.
* Clubs will not have to buy the third DP roster slot to accommodate Designated Players 23 years old and younger.
* Age of player is determined by year (not date) of birth.
The maximum budget charge for Designated Players over age 23 was increased to $368,750 for 2013, $387,500 in 2014, $436,250 in 2015, $457,500 in 2016, and $480,625 in 2017. The budget charge for those who join during the midseason transfer window has remained at one-half of the full-season cap charge since the inception of the rule. The budget charges for younger players have not changed since 2012.

## Background

The rule is informally named after David Beckham, in anticipation of MLS teams signing lucrative deals with internationally recognized players of Beckham's caliber. Beckham was the first player to be signed under this rule, signing a lucrative contract with the Los Angeles Galaxy worth up to $250 million over five years, with direct guaranteed compensation from MLS and Galaxy at $6.5 million a year.

## Current Designated Players

    As of February 27, 2025
| Year signed as DP | Player | Current club | 2024 guaranteed compensation |
| 2017 | Albert Rusnák | Seattle Sounders | $2,221,667 |
| 2019 | Carles Gil | New England Revolution | $4,452,083 |
| 2020 | Hany Mukhtar | Nashville SC | $5,211,667 |
| 2020 | Darlington Nagbe | Columbus Crew | $1,540,000 |
| 2020 | Cristian Espinoza | San Jose Earthquakes | $2,002,000 |
| 2021 | Luciano Acosta | FC Dallas | $4,216,413 |
| 2021 | Kévin Cabral | Colorado Rapids | $1,950,000 |
| 2021 | Talles Magno† | New York City FC | $1,198,000 |
| 2021 | Ryan Gauld | Vancouver Whitecaps | $2,985,000 |
| 2022 | Mikael Uhre | Philadelphia Union | $2,040,000 |
| 2022 | Thiago Martins | New York City FC | $2,462,000 |
| 2022 | Andrés Cubas | Vancouver Whitecaps | $1,146,375 |
| 2022 | Walker Zimmerman | Nashville SC | $3,456,979 |
| 2022 | Lorenzo Insigne | Toronto FC | $15,400,000 |
| 2022 | Giacomo Vrioni | CF Montréal | $1,947,500 |
| 2022 | Federico Bernardeschi | Toronto FC | $6,295,381 |
| 2022 | Christian Benteke | D.C. United | $4,432,778 |
| 2022 | Denis Bouanga | Los Angeles FC | $3,609,500 |
| 2023 | João Klauss | St. Louis City SC | $1,370,284 |
| 2023 | Evander | FC Cincinnati | $2,355,000 |
| 2023 | Dániel Gazdag | Philadelphia Union | $1,757,500 |
| 2023 | Martín Ojeda | Orlando City | $972,600 |
| 2023 | Mateusz Klich‡ | D.C. United | $2,093,588 |
| 2023 | Riqui Puig | LA Galaxy | $2,449,996 |
| 2023 | Cristian Arango | San Jose Earthquakes | $2,088,746 |
| 2023 | Rafael Navarro | Colorado Rapids | $1,427,708 |
| 2023 | Lionel Messi | Inter Miami | $20,446,667 |
| 2023 | Sergio Busquets | Inter Miami | $8,774,996 |
| 2023 | Sam Surridge | Nashville SC | $2,907,639 |
| 2023 | Diego Rossi | Columbus Crew | $3,376,827 |
| 2024 | Tomás Chancalay | New England Revolution | $1,010,000 |
| 2024 | Emil Forsberg | New York Red Bulls | $6,035,625 |
| 2024 | Djordje Mihailovic | Colorado Rapids | $1,675,000 |
| 2024 | Pedro de la Vega | Seattle Sounders | $1,164,000 |
| 2024 | Gabriel Pec | LA Galaxy | $2,459,000 |
| 2024 | Petar Musa | FC Dallas | $2,230,000 |
| 2024 | Hugo Cuypers | Chicago Fire | $3,528,044 |
| 2024 | Luis Muriel | Orlando City | $4,336,150 |
| 2024 | Joseph Paintsil | LA Galaxy | $3,358,000 |
| 2024 | Liel Abada | Charlotte FC | $2,448,500 |
| 2024 | Jonathan Rodríguez | Portland Timbers | $2,627,500 |
| 2024 | Hernán López | San Jose Earthquakes | $1,020,000 |
| 2024 | Ezequiel Ponce | Houston Dynamo | $2,822,200 |
| 2024 | Olivier Giroud | Los Angeles FC | $3,675,000 |
| 2024 | Osman Bukari | Austin FC | $1,000,000 |
| 2024 | Marcel Hartel | St. Louis City SC | $2,183,113 |
| 2024 | Kelvin Yeboah | Minnesota United | $1,427,200 |
| 2024 | Aleksei Miranchuk | Atlanta United | $3,685,441 |
| 2024 | Diogo Gonçalves | Real Salt Lake | $1,797,108 |
| 2024 | Joaquín Pereyra | Minnesota United | $699,800 |
| 2025 | Hirving Lozano | San Diego FC | $n/a |
| 2025 | Kévin Denkey | FC Cincinnati | $n/a |
| 2025 | Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting | New York Red Bulls | $n/a |
| 2025 | Brandon Vázquez | Austin FC | $n/a |
| 2025 | Jordan Morris | Seattle Sounders | $1,693,750 |
| 2025 | Jonathan Bamba | Chicago Fire | $n/a |
| 2025 | Wilfried Zaha | Charlotte FC | $n/a |
| 2025 | Anders Dreyer | San Diego FC | $n/a |
| 2025 | Myrto Uzuni | Austin FC | $n/a |
| 2025 | Miguel Almirón | Atlanta United | $n/a |
| 2025 | Dejan Joveljić | Sporting Kansas City | $683,750 |
| 2025 | Manu García | Sporting Kansas City | $n/a |
| 2025 | Emmanuel Latte Lath | Atlanta United | $n/a |
| 2025 | Marco Pašalić | Orlando City | $n/a |
| 2025 | David da Costa | Portland Timbers | $n/a |
| 2025 | Bruno Damiani | Philadelphia Union | $n/a |
| 2025 | Cengiz Ünder | Los Angeles FC | $n/a |
| 2025 | Artur | Houston Dynamo | $783,375 |
| 2025 | Jordi Alba | Inter Miami | $1,500,000 |
Notes
* Chart indicates when players signed their current Designated Player contract, not necessarily their first year in MLS.
* Other players in MLS may also be paid a salary that takes them above the Designated Player threshold, but they have had their salary reduced against the salary cap using General or Targeted Allocation Money.
* Player salaries may be below the Designated Player threshold, but their transfer fee might mean the total compensation takes them above the threshold.
* Player salaries include compensation from their MLS contract, not including any bonuses or compensation from contracts with individual teams or their affiliates.
† Player on loan at another club outside MLS ‡ Player on loan from another club inside MLS

## Club DP history

    As of February 4, 2024
Notes
* The below list indicates players who have had their contract assigned as a Designated Player (DP) contract during their time in MLS. Players may have not always have had a DP contract, or have later had their contract negotiated below a DP level. Similarly, some players have been in MLS whose salary has been at a DP level, but the club has opted to bring their salary below the DP threshold using General Allocation Money or Targeted Allocation Money. Their listed "Years as DP" indicates what seasons they were active as a DP for that club only. Players in bold are currently signed to a DP contract by their club.
* Former MLS sides Miami Fusion and Tampa Bay Mutiny were dissolved before the introduction of the Designated Player Rule.

### Atlanta United FC

| Player | Previous club | Years as DP |
| Héctor Villalba | San Lorenzo | 2017 |
| Miguel Almirón | Lanús | 2017–2018, 2025– |
| Josef Martínez | Torino | 2017–2022 |
| Esequiel Barco | Independiente | 2018–2021 |
| Pity Martínez | River Plate | 2019–2020 |
| Marcelino Moreno | Lanús | 2020 |
| Alan Franco | Independiente | 2021 |
| Luiz Araújo | Lille | 2021–2023 |
| Thiago Almada | Vélez Sarsfield | 2022–2024 |
| Giorgos Giakoumakis | Celtic | 2023–2024 |
| Saba Lobzhanidze | Hatayspor | 2023 |
| Stian Rode Gregersen | Bordeaux | 2024 |
| Aleksei Miranchuk | Atalanta | 2024– |
| Emmanuel Latte Lath | Middlesbrough | 2025– |

### Austin FC

| Player | Previous club | Years as DP |
| Cecilio Domínguez | Independiente | 2021–2022 |
| Tomás Pochettino | Talleres | 2021 |
| Sebastián Driussi | Zenit Saint Petersburg | 2021–2024 |
| Alexander Ring | New York City FC | 2022–2024 |
| Emiliano Rigoni | São Paulo | 2022–2024 |
| Osman Bukari | Red Star Belgrade | 2024– |
| Brandon Vázquez | Monterrey | 2025– |
| Myrto Uzuni | Granada | 2025– |

### Charlotte FC

| Player | Previous club | Years as DP |
| Jordy Alcívar | L.D.U. Quito | 2022 |
| Karol Świderski | PAOK | 2022–2023, 2024 |
| Kamil Jóźwiak | Derby County | 2022–2023 |
| Enzo Copetti | Racing Club | 2023–2024 |
| Liel Abada | Celtic | 2024– |
| Pep Biel | Olympiacos | 2024 |
| Wilfried Zaha | Galatasaray | 2025– |

### Chicago Fire FC

| Player | Previous club | Years as DP |
| Cuauhtémoc Blanco | América | 2007–2009 |
| Freddie Ljungberg | Seattle Sounders | 2010 |
| Nery Castillo | Shakhtar Donetsk | 2010 |
| Álvaro Fernández | Seattle Sounders | 2012–2013 |
| Sherjill MacDonald | Germinal Beerschot | 2012–2013 |
| Federico Puppo | Danubio | 2012–2014 |
| Egidio Arévalo Ríos | Tijuana | 2013 |
| Juan Luis Anangonó | El Nacional | 2013–2014 |
| Gilberto | Toronto FC | 2015–2016 |
| David Accam | Helsingborg | 2015–2017 |
| Shaun Maloney | Wigan Athletic | 2015 |
| Kennedy Igboananike | AIK | 2015–2016 |
| Nemanja Nikolić | Legia Warsaw | 2017–2019 |
| Bastian Schweinsteiger | Manchester United | 2017–2019 |
| Aleksandar Katai | Alavés | 2019 |
| Robert Berić | Saint-Étienne | 2020–2021 |
| Ignacio Aliseda | Defensa y Justicia | 2020–2021 |
| Gastón Giménez | Vélez Sarsfield | 2020–2022, 2024 |
| Xherdan Shaqiri | Lyon | 2022–2024 |
| Jairo Torres | Atlas | 2022–2023 |
| Ousmane Doumbia | Lugano | 2023 |
| Hugo Cuypers | Gent | 2024– |
| Jonathan Bamba | Celta Vigo | 2025– |

### Chivas USA (defunct)

| Player | Previous club | Years as DP |
| Juan Pablo Ángel | LA Galaxy | 2011–2012 |
| Oswaldo Minda | Deportivo Quito | 2012–2014 |
| Shalrie Joseph | New England Revolution | 2012 |
| Erick Torres | Guadalajara | 2013–2014 |
| Mauro Rosales | Seattle Sounders | 2014 |

### FC Cincinnati

| Player | Previous club | Years as DP |
| Fanendo Adi | Portland Timbers | 2019 |
| Allan Cruz | Herediano | 2019–2020 |
| Yuya Kubo | Gent | 2020, 2021–2022 |
| Jürgen Locadia | Brighton & Hove Albion | 2020–2021 |
| Brenner | São Paulo | 2021–2023 |
| Luciano Acosta | Atlas | 2021–2024 |
| Obinna Nwobodo | Göztepe | 2022–2024 |
| Aaron Boupendza | Al-Shabab | 2023–2024 |
| Kévin Denkey | Cercle Brugge | 2025– |
| Evander | Portland Timbers | 2025– |

### Colorado Rapids

| Player | Previous club | Years as DP |
| Gabriel Torres | Zamora | 2013–2015 |
| Juan Edgardo Ramírez | Argentinos Juniors | 2015–2017 |
| Kevin Doyle | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 2015–2016 |
| Shkëlzen Gashi | Basel | 2016–2018 |
| Tim Howard | Everton | 2016–2019 |
| Younes Namli | Krasnodar | 2020–2021 |
| Gyasi Zardes | Columbus Crew | 2022 |
| Kévin Cabral | LA Galaxy | 2023– |
| Andreas Maxsø | Brøndby | 2023 |
| Rafael Navarro | Palmeiras | 2023– |
| Djordje Mihailovic | AZ | 2023– |

### Columbus Crew

| Player | Previous club | Years as DP |
| Guillermo Barros Schelotto | Boca Juniors | 2009–2010 |
| Andrés Mendoza | Diyarbakırspor | 2010–2011 |
| Federico Higuaín | Colón | 2012–2019 |
| Kei Kamara | Middlesbrough | 2016 |
| Jonathan Mensah | Anzhi Makhachkala | 2017 |
| Pedro Santos | Braga | 2017–2019 |
| Gyasi Zardes | LA Galaxy | 2019–2022 |
| Darlington Nagbe | Atlanta United | 2020– |
| Lucas Zelarayán | Tigres UANL | 2020–2023 |
| Cucho Hernández | Watford | 2022–2024 |
| Diego Rossi | Fenerbahçe | 2023– |

### FC Dallas

| Player | Previous club | Years as DP |
| Denílson | Al-Nassr | 2007 |
| David Ferreira | Atlético Paranaense | 2009–2013 |
| Fabián Castillo | Deportivo Cali | 2011–2015 |
| Julian de Guzman | Toronto FC | 2012 |
| Eric Hassli | Toronto FC | 2013 |
| Mauro Díaz | River Plate | 2013–2016 |
| Andrés Ramiro Escobar | Dynamo Kyiv | 2014 |
| David Texeira | Groningen | 2014–2015 |
| Carlos Gruezo | VfB Stuttgart | 2016–2018 |
| Aníbal Chalá | El Nacional | 2017 |
| Cristian Colmán | Nacional Asunción | 2017–2018 |
| Santiago Mosquera | Millonarios | 2018–2020 |
| Bryan Acosta | Tenerife | 2019–2021 |
| Pablo Aránguiz | Unión Española | 2019 |
| Franco Jara | Pachuca | 2020–2022 |
| Jesús Ferreira | FC Dallas Academy | 2022–2024 |
| Alan Velasco | Independiente | 2022–2024 |
| Petar Musa | Benfica | 2024– |
| Luciano Acosta | FC Cincinnati | 2025– |

### D.C. United

| Player | Previous club | Years as DP |
| Luciano Emílio | Olimpia | 2008–2009 |
| Marcelo Gallardo | Paris Saint-Germain | 2008 |
| Branko Bošković | Rapid Wien | 2010–2012 |
| Dwayne De Rosario | New York Red Bulls | 2011–2013 |
| Hamdi Salihi | Rapid Wien | 2012 |
| Rafael Gladiador | Bahia | 2013 |
| Eddie Johnson | Seattle Sounders | 2014–2015 |
| Fabián Espíndola | New York Red Bulls | 2015–2016 |
| Paul Arriola | Tijuana | 2017–2021 |
| Wayne Rooney | Everton | 2018–2019 |
| Lucas Rodríguez | Estudiantes | 2019 |
| Edison Flores | Morelia | 2020–2022 |
| Taxiarchis Fountas | Rapid Wien | 2022–2023 |
| Victor Pálsson | Schalke 04 | 2022 |
| Christian Benteke | Crystal Palace | 2022– |
| Mateusz Klich | Leeds United | 2023– |
| Matti Peltola | HJK | 2024 |

### Houston Dynamo FC

| Player | Previous club | Years as DP |
| Luis Ángel Landín | Morelia | 2009–2010 |
| Boniek García | Olimpia | 2012–2014 |
| Giles Barnes | Doncaster Rovers | 2012–2016 |
| Alexander López | Olimpia | 2013–2014 |
| DaMarcus Beasley | Puebla | 2014–2016 |
| Mauro Manotas | Uniautónoma | 2015–2016, 2020 |
| Erick Torres | Guadalajara | 2015–2017 |
| Alberth Elis | Monterrey | 2017–2020 |
| Tomás Martínez | Braga | 2017–2019 |
| Darwin Quintero | Minnesota United | 2020–2021 |
| Teenage Hadebe | Yeni Malatyaspor | 2021–2023 |
| Sebastián Ferreira | Libertad | 2022–2024 |
| Héctor Herrera | Atlético Madrid | 2022–2024 |
| Ezequiel Ponce | AEK Athens | 2024– |
| Artur | Columbus Crew | 2025– |

### Inter Miami CF

| Player | Previous club | Years as DP |
| Matías Pellegrini | Estudiantes | 2020 |
| Rodolfo Pizarro | Monterrey | 2020–2023 |
| Gonzalo Higuaín | Juventus | 2020–2022 |
| Blaise Matuidi | Juventus | 2021 |
| Gregore | Bahia | 2021–2023 |
| Alejandro Pozuelo | Toronto FC | 2022 |
| Leonardo Campana | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 2023–2024 |
| Lionel Messi | Paris Saint-Germain | 2023– |
| Sergio Busquets | Barcelona | 2023– |
| Jordi Alba | Barcelona | 2025– |

### Sporting Kansas City

| Player | Previous club | Years as DP |
| Claudio López | Racing Club | 2008 |
| Omar Bravo | Guadalajara | 2011 |
| Jéferson | Vasco da Gama | 2011 |
| Claudio Bieler | L.D.U. Quito | 2013–2014 |
| Matt Besler | University of Notre Dame | 2014–2016 |
| Graham Zusi | University of Maryland | 2014–2017 |
| Roger Espinoza | Wigan Athletic | 2015–2018 |
| Diego Rubio | Valladolid | 2016 |
| Gerso Fernandes | Belenenses | 2017 |
| Yohan Croizet | Mechelen | 2018–2019 |
| Felipe Gutiérrez | Real Betis | 2018–2020 |
| Johnny Russell | Derby County | 2019–2024 |
| Alan Pulido | Guadalajara | 2020–2024 |
| Gadi Kinda | Beitar Jerusalem | 2021–2023 |
| Nemanja Radoja | Levante | 2024 |
| Dániel Sallói | Újpest | 2024 |
| Dejan Joveljić | LA Galaxy | 2025– |
| Manu García | Aris | 2025– |

### LA Galaxy

| Player | Previous club | Years as DP |
| David Beckham | Real Madrid | 2007–2012 |
| Landon Donovan | Bayer Leverkusen | 2010–2014 |
| Juan Pablo Ángel | New York Red Bulls | 2011 |
| Robbie Keane | Tottenham Hotspur | 2011–2016 |
| Omar Gonzalez | University of Maryland | 2013–2015 |
| Steven Gerrard | Liverpool | 2015–2016 |
| Giovani dos Santos | Villarreal | 2015–2018 |
| Jelle Van Damme | Standard Liège | 2016–2017 |
| Romain Alessandrini | Marseille | 2017–2019 |
| Jonathan dos Santos | Villarreal | 2017–2021 |
| Zlatan Ibrahimović | Manchester United | 2019 |
| Cristian Pavón | Boca Juniors | 2020 |
| Javier Hernández | Sevilla | 2020–2023 |
| Kévin Cabral | Valenciennes | 2021–2022 |
| Douglas Costa | Juventus | 2022–2023 |
| Riqui Puig | Barcelona | 2023– |
| Gabriel Pec | Vasco da Gama | 2024– |
| Joseph Paintsil | Genk | 2024– |

### Los Angeles FC

| Player | Previous club | Years as DP |
| Carlos Vela | Real Sociedad | 2018–2023 |
| Diego Rossi | Peñarol | 2018–2021 |
| André Horta | Benfica | 2018–2019 |
| Brian Rodríguez | Peñarol | 2019–2021 |
| Denis Bouanga | Saint-Étienne | 2022– |
| Eduard Atuesta | Palmeiras | 2024 |
| Olivier Giroud | AC Milan | 2024– |
| Cengiz Ünder | Fenerbahçe | 2025– |

### Minnesota United FC

| Player | Previous club | Years as DP |
| Darwin Quintero | América | 2018–2019 |
| Ángelo Rodríguez | Deportes Tolima | 2018–2019 |
| Ján Greguš | Copenhagen | 2019–2021 |
| Thomás Chacón | Danubio | 2019–2020 |
| Emanuel Reynoso | Boca Juniors | 2020–2024 |
| Adrien Hunou | Rennes | 2021–2022 |
| Luis Amarilla | Vélez Sarsfield | 2022–2023 |
| Ménder García | Once Caldas | 2022–2023 |
| Teemu Pukki | Norwich City | 2023–2024 |
| Kelvin Yeboah | Genoa | 2024– |
| Joaquín Pereyra | Atlético Tucumán | 2024– |

### CF Montréal

| Player | Previous club | Years as DP |
| Marco Di Vaio | Bologna | 2012–2014 |
| Hernán Bernardello | Almería | 2013–2014 |
| Ignacio Piatti | San Lorenzo | 2014–2019 |
| Didier Drogba | Chelsea | 2015–2016 |
| Lucas Ontivero | Galatasaray | 2016 |
| Blerim Džemaili | Bologna | 2017 |
| Saphir Taïder | Bologna | 2018–2020 |
| Victor Wanyama | Tottenham Hotspur | 2020–2024 |
| Aljaž Struna | Houston Dynamo | 2021 |
| Djordje Mihailovic | Chicago Fire | 2021 |
| Giacomo Vrioni | New England Revolution | 2025– |

### Nashville SC

| Player | Previous club | Years as DP |
| Hany Mukhtar | Brøndby | 2020– |
| Randall Leal | Saprissa | 2020–2021 |
| Jhonder Cádiz | Benfica | 2020–2021 |
| Aké Arnaud Loba | Monterrey | 2021–2023 |
| Walker Zimmerman | Los Angeles FC | 2022– |
| Sam Surridge | Nottingham Forest | 2023– |

### New England Revolution

| Player | Previous club | Years as DP |
| Milton Caraglio | Rosario Central | 2011 |
| Shalrie Joseph | New York Freedom | 2012 |
| Jerry Bengtson | Motagua | 2012–2014 |
| Jermaine Jones | Beşiktaş | 2014–2015 |
| José Gonçalves | Sion | 2016 |
| Xavier Kouassi | Sion | 2016–2017 |
| Kei Kamara | Columbus Crew | 2016–2017 |
| Claude Dielna | Sheffield Wednesday | 2018 |
| Carles Gil | Deportivo La Coruña | 2019– |
| Gustavo Bou | Tijuana | 2019–2023 |
| Adam Buksa | Pogoń Szczecin | 2020–2022 |
| Giacomo Vrioni | Juventus | 2022–2024 |
| Tomás Chancalay | Racing Club | 2024– |

### New York City FC

| Player | Previous club | Years as DP |
| David Villa | Atlético Madrid | 2014–2018 |
| Frank Lampard | Manchester City | 2015–2016 |
| Andrea Pirlo | Juventus | 2015–2017 |
| Maximiliano Moralez | León | 2017–2021 |
| Jesús Medina | Libertad | 2018–2021 |
| Alexandru Mitriță | Universitatea Craiova | 2019–2020 |
| Talles Magno | Vasco da Gama | 2021– |
| Thiago Martins | Yokohama F. Marinos | 2022– |
| Santiago Rodríguez | Montevideo City Torque | 2023–2025 |

### New York Red Bulls

| Player | Previous club | Years as DP |
| Claudio Reyna | Manchester City | 2007–2008 |
| Juan Pablo Ángel | Aston Villa | 2007–2010 |
| Thierry Henry | Barcelona | 2010–2014 |
| Rafael Márquez | Barcelona | 2010–2012 |
| Frank Rost | Hamburger SV | 2011 |
| Tim Cahill | Everton | 2012–2014 |
| Bradley Wright-Phillips | Charlton Athletic | 2015–2016, 2017–2019 |
| Gonzalo Verón | San Lorenzo | 2015–2017 |
| Sacha Kljestan | Anderlecht | 2016–2017 |
| Omer Damari | RB Leipzig | 2016 |
| Kaku | Huracán | 2018–2021 |
| Josh Sims | Southampton | 2019–2020 |
| Dru Yearwood | Brentford | 2020–2021 |
| Patryk Klimala | Celtic | 2021–2022 |
| Luquinhas | Legia Warsaw | 2022–2023 |
| Dante Vanzeir | Union SG | 2023–2024 |
| Emil Forsberg | RB Leipzig | 2024– |
| Felipe Carballo | Grêmio | 2024 |
| Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting | Bayern Munich | 2025– |

### Orlando City SC

| Player | Previous club | Years as DP |
| Kaká | Milan | 2014–2017 |
| Carlos Rivas | Deportivo Cali | 2015–2017 |
| Bryan Róchez | Real España | 2015–2016 |
| Matías Pérez García | San Jose Earthquakes | 2016–2017 |
| Giles Barnes | Vancouver Whitecaps | 2017 |
| Yoshimar Yotún | Malmö FF | 2017 |
| Dom Dwyer | Sporting Kansas City | 2018–2020 |
| Sacha Kljestan | New York Red Bulls | 2018 |
| Josué Colmán | Cerro Porteño | 2018–2019 |
| Nani | Sporting CP | 2019–2021 |
| Mauricio Pereyra | Krasnodar | 2019–2022 |
| Facundo Torres | Peñarol | 2022–2024 |
| Ercan Kara | Rapid Wien | 2022–2023 |
| Martín Ojeda | Godoy Cruz | 2023– |
| Luis Muriel | Atalanta | 2024– |
| Marco Pašalić | HNK Rijeka | 2025– |

### Philadelphia Union

| Player | Previous club | Years as DP |
| Freddy Adu | Benfica | 2011–2012 |
| José Kléberson | Bahia | 2013 |
| Cristian Maidana | Rangers de Talca | 2014–2015 |
| Maurice Edu | Stoke City | 2014–2017 |
| Fernando Aristeguieta | Nantes | 2015 |
| Alejandro Bedoya | Nantes | 2016–2019 |
| Bořek Dočkal | Henan Jianye | 2018 |
| Marco Fabián | Eintracht Frankfurt | 2019 |
| Jamiro Monteiro | Metz | 2020–2021 |
| Julián Carranza | Inter Miami | 2022–2024 |
| Mikael Uhre | Brøndby | 2022– |
| Dániel Gazdag | Budapest Honvéd | 2023– |
| Bruno Damiani | Nacional | 2025– |

### Portland Timbers

| Player | Previous club | Years as DP |
| Diego Chará | Deportes Tolima | 2011–2013 |
| Kris Boyd | Eskişehirspor | 2012 |
| Diego Valeri | Lanús | 2013–2019 |
| Fanendo Adi | Copenhagen | 2014–2015, 2016–2018 |
| Liam Ridgewell | West Bromwich Albion | 2014–2016 |
| Lucas Melano | Lanús | 2015–2016, 2019 |
| Sebastián Blanco | San Lorenzo | 2017–2023 |
| Brian Fernández | Necaxa | 2019 |
| Yimmi Chará | Atlético Mineiro | 2020–2023 |
| Jarosław Niezgoda | Legia Warsaw | 2020–2023 |
| Evander | Midtjylland | 2023–2024 |
| Jonathan Rodríguez | América | 2024– |
| David da Costa | Lens | 2025– |

### Real Salt Lake

| Player | Previous club | Years as DP |
| Álvaro Saborío | Sion | 2011–2015 |
| Javier Morales | Vecindario | 2011–2015 |
| Kyle Beckerman | Colorado Rapids | 2015 |
| Joao Plata | Toronto FC | 2015–2016 |
| Sebastián Jaime | Unión Española | 2014–2015 |
| Juan Manuel Martínez | Boca Juniors | 2015–2016 |
| Yura Movsisyan | Spartak Moscow | 2016–2017 |
| Albert Rusnák | Groningen | 2017–2021 |
| Jefferson Savarino | Zulia Atlético Mineiro | 2017–2019 2022–2023 |
| Sam Johnson | Vålerenga | 2019–2020 |
| Jeizon Ramírez | Deportivo Táchira | 2020–2021 |
| Damir Kreilach | Union Berlin | 2020–2023 |
| Cristian Arango | Pachuca | 2023–2024 |
| Diogo Gonçalves | Copenhagen | 2024– |

### St. Louis City SC

| Player | Previous club | Years as DP |
| João Klauss | TSG 1899 Hoffenheim | 2023– |
| Eduard Löwen | Hertha BSC | 2023–2024 |
| Marcel Hartel | FC St. Pauli | 2024– |

### San Diego FC

| Player | Previous club | Years as DP |
| Hirving Lozano | PSV Eindhoven | 2025– |
| Anders Dreyer | Anderlecht | 2025– |

### San Jose Earthquakes

| Player | Previous club | Years as DP |
| Geovanni | Hull City | 2010 |
| Chris Wondolowski | Houston Dynamo | 2013–2019 |
| Matías Pérez García | Tigre | 2014–2016 |
| Innocent Emeghara | Qarabağ | 2015–2016 |
| Simon Dawkins | Derby County | 2016–2017 |
| Valeri Qazaishvili | Vitesse | 2017–2020 |
| Magnus Eriksson | Djurgårdens IF | 2018 |
| Cristian Espinoza | Villarreal | 2020– |
| Javier Eduardo López | Guadalajara | 2021–2022 |
| Jamiro Monteiro | Philadelphia Union | 2022–2023 |
| Carlos Gruezo | FC Augsburg | 2023–2025 |
| Hernán López | Godoy Cruz | 2024– |
| Cristian Arango | Real Salt Lake | 2025– |

### Seattle Sounders FC

| Player | Previous club | Years as DP |
| Freddie Ljungberg | West Ham United | 2009–2010 |
| Álvaro Fernández | Nacional | 2010–2012 |
| Blaise Nkufo | Twente | 2010 |
| Fredy Montero | Deportivo Cali | 2011-2012 |
| Mauro Rosales | River Plate | 2011–2013 |
| Christian Tiffert | Kaiserslautern | 2012–2013 |
| Shalrie Joseph | Chivas USA | 2013 |
| Obafemi Martins | Levante | 2013–2015 |
| Clint Dempsey | Tottenham Hotspur | 2013–2018 |
| Osvaldo Alonso | Charleston Battery | 2014–2018 |
| Nelson Valdez | Eintracht Frankfurt | 2015–2016 |
| Nicolás Lodeiro | Boca Juniors | 2016–2023 |
| Raúl Ruidíaz | Morelia | 2018–2024 |
| Víctor Rodríguez | Sporting Gijón | 2019 |
| Xavier Arreaga | Barcelona S.C. | 2019 |
| João Paulo | Botafogo | 2020–2021 |
| Albert Rusnák | Real Salt Lake | 2022– |
| Pedro de la Vega | Lanús | 2024– |
| Jordan Morris | Seattle Sounders Academy | 2025– |

### Toronto FC

| Player | Previous club | Years as DP |
| Julian de Guzman | Deportivo La Coruña | 2009–2012 |
| Mista | Deportivo La Coruña | 2010 |
| Danny Koevermans | PSV Eindhoven | 2011–2013 |
| Torsten Frings | Werder Bremen | 2011–2012 |
| Eric Hassli | Vancouver Whitecaps | 2012 |
| Matías Laba | Argentinos Juniors | 2013 |
| Gilberto | Internacional | 2014 |
| Michael Bradley | Roma | 2014–2019 |
| Jermain Defoe | Tottenham Hotspur | 2014–2015 |
| Sebastian Giovinco | Juventus | 2015–2018 |
| Jozy Altidore | Sunderland | 2015–2021 |
| Alejandro Pozuelo | Genk | 2019–2022 |
| Pablo Piatti | Espanyol | 2020 |
| Yeferson Soteldo | Santos | 2021 |
| Carlos Salcedo | Tigres UANL | 2022 |
| Lorenzo Insigne | Napoli | 2022– |
| Federico Bernardeschi | Juventus | 2022– |
| Jonathan Osorio | SC Toronto | 2023–2024 |
| Richie Laryea | Nottingham Forest | 2024 |

### Vancouver Whitecaps FC

| Player | Previous club | Years as DP |
| Eric Hassli | Zürich | 2011–2012 |
| Mustapha Jarju | Mons | 2011 |
| Barry Robson | Middlesbrough | 2012 |
| Kenny Miller | Cardiff City | 2012–2014 |
| Matías Laba | Toronto FC | 2014–2017 |
| Mauro Rosales | Chivas USA | 2014 |
| Pedro Morales | Málaga | 2014–2016 |
| Octavio Rivero | O'Higgins | 2015–2016 |
| Fredy Montero | Tianjin TEDA Sporting CP | 2017 2019 |
| Brek Shea | Orlando City | 2017–2018 |
| Kendall Waston | Saprissa | 2018 |
| Hwang In-beom | Daejeon Citizen | 2019–2020 |
| Joaquín Ardaiz | Chiasso | 2019 |
| Ali Adnan Kadhim | Udinese | 2019–2021 |
| Lucas Cavallini | Puebla | 2020–2022 |
| Ryan Gauld | Farense | 2021– |
| Andrés Cubas | Nîmes | 2022– |
| Sergio Córdova | FC Augsburg | 2023 |
| Stuart Armstrong | Southampton | 2024 |

## Past and present Designated Players by country

| Number | Country | Players |
| 56 | Argentina | Luciano Acosta, Ignacio Aliseda, Thiago Almada, Esequiel Barco, Guillermo Barros Schelotto, Hernán Bernardello, Claudio Bieler, Sebastián Blanco, Gustavo Bou, Milton Caraglio, Julián Carranza, Tomás Chancalay, Enzo Copetti, Pedro de la Vega, Mauro Díaz, Sebastián Driussi, Fabián Espíndola, Cristian Espinoza, Brian Fernández, Alan Franco, Marcelo Gallardo, Federico Higuaín, Gonzalo Higuaín, Sebastián Jaime, Franco Jara, Matías Laba, Claudio López, Hernán López, Cristian Maidana, Juan Manuel Martínez, Pity Martínez, Tomás Martínez, Lucas Melano, Lionel Messi, Javier Morales, Maximiliano Moralez, Marcelino Moreno, Martín Ojeda, Lucas Ontivero, Cristian Pavón, Matías Pellegrini, Joaquín Pereyra, Matías Pérez García, Ignacio Piatti, Pablo Piatti, Tomás Pochettino, Ezequiel Ponce, Juan Edgardo Ramírez, Emanuel Reynoso, Emiliano Rigoni, Lucas Rodríguez, Mauro Rosales, Diego Valeri, Gonzalo Verón, Milton Valenzuela, Alan Velasco |
| 27 | United States | Freddy Adu, Jozy Altidore, Paul Arriola, DaMarcus Beasley, Kyle Beckerman, Alejandro Bedoya, Matt Besler, Michael Bradley, Clint Dempsey, Landon Donovan, Dom Dwyer, Maurice Edu, Jesús Ferreira, Omar Gonzalez, Tim Howard, Eddie Johnson, Jermaine Jones, Djordje Mihailovic, Jordan Morris, Darlington Nagbe, Claudio Reyna, Brek Shea, Brandon Vázquez, Chris Wondolowski, Gyasi Zardes, Walker Zimmerman, Graham Zusi |
| 20 | Brazil | Luiz Araújo, Artur, Brenner, Douglas Costa, Denílson, Luciano Emílio, Evander, Geovanni, Gilberto, Rafael Gladiador, Jéferson, Kaká, João Klauss, José Kléberson, Luquinhas, Talles Magno, Thiago Martins, Rafael Navarro, João Paulo, Gabriel Pec |
| 18 | Mexico | Cuauhtémoc Blanco, Omar Bravo, Nery Castillo, Marco Fabián, Javier Hernández, Héctor Herrera, Luis Ángel Landín, Javier Eduardo López, Hirving Lozano, Rafael Márquez, Rodolfo Pizarro, Alan Pulido, Carlos Salcedo, Giovani dos Santos, Jonathan dos Santos, Erick Torres, Jairo Torres, Carlos Vela |
| 16 | Colombia | Juan Pablo Ángel, Cristian Arango, Eduard Atuesta, Fabián Castillo, Diego Chará, Yimmi Chará, Andrés Ramiro Escobar, David Ferreira, Ménder García, Cucho Hernández, Mauro Manotas, Fredy Montero, Santiago Mosquera, Luis Muriel, Darwin Quintero, Ángelo Rodríguez |
| 16 | Uruguay | Joaquín Ardaiz, Felipe Carballo, Thomás Chacón, Bruno Damiani, Álvaro Fernández, Nicolás Lodeiro, Mauricio Pereyra, Federico Puppo, Egidio Arévalo Rios, Octavio Rivero, Brian Rodríguez, Jonathan Rodríguez, Santiago Rodríguez, Diego Rossi, David Texeira, Facundo Torres |
| 12 | Paraguay | Miguel Almirón, Luis Amarilla, Cristian Colmán, Josué Colmán, Andrés Cubas, Cecilio Domínguez, Sebastián Ferreira, Gastón Giménez, Kaku, Jesús Medina, Nelson Valdez, Héctor Villalba |
| 10 | England | David Beckham, Jermain Defoe, Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard, Liam Ridgewell, Wayne Rooney, Josh Sims, Sam Surridge, Bradley Wright-Phillips, Dru Yearwood |
| 10 | Spain | Jordi Alba, Pep Biel, Sergio Busquets, Manu García, Carles Gil, Mista, Alejandro Pozuelo, Riqui Puig, Víctor Rodríguez, David Villa |
| 9 | France | Romain Alessandrini, Kévin Cabral, Yohan Croizet, Claude Dielna, Olivier Giroud, Eric Hassli, Thierry Henry, Adrien Hunou, Blaise Matuidi |
| 8 | Ecuador | Jordy Alcívar, Juan Luis Anangonó, Xavier Arreaga, Leonardo Campana, Aníbal Chalá, Carlos Gruezo, Oswaldo Minda, Joao Plata |
| 7 | Germany | Torsten Frings, Marcel Hartel, Eduard Löwen, Hany Mukhtar, Frank Rost, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Christian Tiffert |
| 7 | Honduras | Bryan Acosta, Jerry Bengtson, Alberth Elis, Roger Espinoza, Boniek García, Alexander López, Bryan Róchez |
| 7 | Ivory Coast | Jonathan Bamba, Ousmane Doumbia, Didier Drogba, Xavier Kouassi, Emmanuel Latte Lath, Aké Arnaud Loba, Wilfried Zaha |
| 7 | Scotland | Stuart Armstrong, Kris Boyd, Ryan Gauld, Shaun Maloney, Kenny Miller, Barry Robson, Johnny Russell |
| 7 | Venezuela | Fernando Aristeguieta, Jhonder Cádiz, Sergio Córdova, Josef Martínez, Jeizon Ramírez, Jefferson Savarino, Yeferson Soteldo |
| 6 | Italy | Federico Bernardeschi, Marco Di Vaio, Sebastian Giovinco, Lorenzo Insigne, Andrea Pirlo, Kelvin Yeboah |
| 6 | Poland | Adam Buksa, Kamil Jóźwiak, Mateusz Klich, Patryk Klimala, Jarosław Niezgoda, Karol Świderski |
| 6 | Portugal | David da Costa, Diogo Gonçalves, José Gonçalves, André Horta, Nani, Pedro Santos |
| 5 | Canada | Lucas Cavallini, Julian de Guzman, Dwayne De Rosario, Richie Laryea, Jonathan Osorio |
| 5 | Costa Rica | Allan Cruz, Luis Díaz, Randall Leal, Álvaro Saborío, Kendall Waston |
| 4 | Belgium | Christian Benteke, Hugo Cuypers, Jelle Van Damme, Dante Vanzeir |
| 4 | Chile | Pablo Aránguiz, Felipe Gutiérrez, Pedro Morales, Diego Rubio |
| 4 | Denmark | Anders Dreyer, Andreas Maxsø, Younes Namli, Mikael Uhre |
| 4 | Ghana | David Accam, Osman Bukari, Jonathan Mensah, Joseph Paintsil |
| 4 | Nigeria | Fanendo Adi, Kennedy Igboananike, Obafemi Martins, Obinna Nwobodo |
| 4 | Peru | Edison Flores, Andrés Mendoza, Raúl Ruidíaz, Yoshimar Yotún |
| 4 | Sweden | Magnus Eriksson, Emil Forsberg, Zlatan Ibrahimović, Freddie Ljungberg |
| 4 | Switzerland | Blerim Džemaili, Innocent Emeghara, Blaise Nkufo, Xherdan Shaqiri |
| 4 | Albania | Shkëlzen Gashi, Hamdi Salihi, Myrto Uzuni, Giacomo Vrioni |
| 3 | Croatia | Damir Kreilach, Petar Musa, Marco Pašalić |
| 3 | Finland | Matti Peltola, Teemu Pukki, Alexander Ring |
| 3 | Hungary | Dániel Gazdag, Nemanja Nikolić, Dániel Sallói |
| 3 | Israel | Liel Abada, Omer Damari, Gadi Kinda |
| 3 | Serbia | Dejan Joveljić, Aleksandar Katai, Nemanja Radoja |
| 2 | Armenia | Yura Movsisyan, Lucas Zelarayán |
| 2 | Gabon | Denis Bouanga, Aaron Boupendza |
| 2 | Georgia | Saba Lobzhanidze, Valeri Qazaishvili |
| 2 | Greece | Taxiarchis Fountas, Giorgos Giakoumakis |
| 2 | Ireland | Kevin Doyle, Robbie Keane |
| 2 | Jamaica | Giles Barnes, Simon Dawkins |
| 2 | Netherlands | Danny Koevermans, Sherjill MacDonald |
| 2 | Slovakia | Ján Greguš, Albert Rusnák |
| 2 | Slovenia | Robert Berić, Aljaž Struna |
| 1 | Algeria | Saphir Taïder |
| 1 | Australia | Tim Cahill |
| 1 | Austria | Ercan Kara |
| 1 | Cameroon | Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting |
| 1 | Cape Verde | Jamiro Monteiro |
| 1 | Cuba | Osvaldo Alonso |
| 1 | Curaçao | Jürgen Locadia |
| 1 | Czech Republic | Bořek Dočkal |
| 1 | Gambia | Mustapha Jarju |
| 1 | Grenada | Shalrie Joseph |
| 1 | Guinea-Bissau | Gerso Fernandes |
| 1 | Iceland | Victor Pálsson |
| 1 | Iraq | Ali Adnan Kadhim |
| 1 | Japan | Yuya Kubo |
| 1 | Kenya | Victor Wanyama |
| 1 | Liberia | Sam Johnson |
| 1 | Montenegro | Branko Bošković |
| 1 | Norway | Stian Rode Gregersen |
| 1 | Panama | Gabriel Torres |
| 1 | Romania | Alexandru Mitriță |
| 1 | Russia | Aleksei Miranchuk |
| 1 | Sierra Leone | Kei Kamara |
| 1 | South Korea | Hwang In-beom |
| 1 | Togo | Kévin Denkey |
| 1 | Turkey | Cengiz Ünder |
| 1 | Zimbabwe | Teenage Hadebe |