Major League Soccer today released updated Club Roster Profiles for all 30 teams in the league, so we now have some fresh insight on how the New York City FC roster is shaping up in the first year under new Sporting Director Todd Dunivant.
Significant things have changed since the last NYCFC Club Roster Profile update shared by MLS back in September 2025. In the previous version of this handy roster graphic, the club was following an entirely different roster construction path and had more open, unoccupied premium roster spots to play with.
Now, the landscape has shifted a bit as Talles Magno has returned to the team, and as another U22 Initiative signing, Julián Fernández, has been moved off the roster while loaned out to Rosario Central in Argentina. A rumored change of designation for club captain Thiago Martins, a Designated Player in his final season under contract, has not materialized and might not actually be possible, at least according to the league's document.
All that and more, we cover below the latest snapshot of New York City FC's Club Roster Profile taken shortly after the league-wide roster compliance deadline, which passed at 8:00 pm ET back on Friday, February 20.
1. Going the Designated Player route
Since the summer of 2024, each previous one of these Club Roster Profiles had New York City FC choosing the "U22 Initiative Player Model" as their roster construction approach. This meant that the club could include on their roster up to two Designated Players, plus up to four U22 Initiative signings, and they got an extra $2 million in General Allocation Money (GAM) to use at their discretion.
That changes to start 2026, mainly because Talles Magno has returned to the club and remains a Designated Player alongside defender Thiago Martins and forward Nico Fernández Mercau.
There's an interesting wrinkle to the fact that Thiago Martins remains listed as a Designated Player. When the Moussa Sylla transfer rumors were at their apex, The Athletic's Tom Bogert reported that Thiago would be "bought down," made to no longer be categorized as a Designated Player for Club Roster Profile purposes, in order to bring Sylla in from FC Schalke 04 as a Designated Player.
Now with the release of the Club Roster Profile, not only does Thiago still remain a DP as of February 20th, but the league's official document indicates that the 30-year-old Brazilian center-back remains ineligible to be converted to a non-DP through the use of allocation money. As far as the latest Club Roster Profile goes, NYCFC is full-up on Designated Players.
2. TAM Players and non-TAM Players
For the first time, goalkeeper Matt Freese is listed among the TAM Players, reflective of that significant raise Freese received when signing a long-term contract extension with New York City FC last season. To refresh your memories and quote directly from the league's rules, a "TAM Player is a player whose Salary Budget charge is above the Maximum Salary Budget Charge ($803,125) and at or below the Maximum Target Allocation Money Amount ($1,803,125)."
Freese got deservedly bumped up to an earnings level on par with the top performers on the NYCFC roster, not long after newly-signed defender Raul Gustavo ($720,000 base salary in 2025) also entered that well-paid portion of the club's roster.
It's interesting to see that newly-signed Australian defender and midfielder, Kai Trewin, is not a TAM Player, meaning his salary comes in at a slightly lower level, at least in his first season here in MLS. Justin Haak, who left to join LA Galaxy after contentious contract negotiations with NYCFC and got replaced by Trewin, is listed as a TAM Player on the Club Roster Profile of the Galaxy.
3. Contract-year decisions looming
Some key, core members of the club's senior roster are in their final guaranteed years under contract with NYCFC. Thiago Martins, Kevin O'Toole, Tayvon Gray, and Tomás Romero are all in their final years and without any options remaining to extend their stays further. The same is true for Maxi Moralez, who appears to be taking it year-to-year when it comes to continuing to play, or possibly retire.
Keaton Parks and Strahinja Tanasijević are also in their final guaranteed contract years, but their deals include options that could be exercised to keep them around beyond the 2026 season. These are just the members of the Senior squad, occupying numbered roster spots 1-20, who begin 2026 with some lingering uncertainties about their futures beyond this season.
Dunivant and his Sporting staff have lots of analyses and decisions to make on long-serving members of this NYCFC roster in the months ahead.
Andrew Leigh
4. Less flexibility, but some remains
There's an unfilled international roster slot, and two U22 Initiative signings are off the roster while away on loans, meaning there are mechanisms at Dunivant's disposal to add talented players to the current squad.
It's less clear-cut how he'd sign another Designated Player at this moment, but Dunivant has avenues open to him while the team continues to look for another goal-scoring forward who can help them cover for Alonso Martínez's absence.
Not included in this latest Club Roster Profile is the current tally of the club's available General Allocation Money, but NYCFC had $5.45 million in GAM, 11th most in MLS, when the league shared figures in January during the preseason. That number likely has gone down, but we'll have to wait until the week of March 2 when the league shares its updated GAM numbers to see how much that number changed for NYCFC.
5. Homegrowns in numbers
There are 10 players on Homegrown contracts listed on this latest Club Roster Profile, with Cooper Flax and Kamran Acito added this offseason and with holdovers in place from Tayvon Gray on down.
Acito is an interesting case in that he's listed in Supplemental Spot 31, a unique roster spot that the league says "may be filled with a player on a season-long loan to a lower-division club in the U.S. or Canada (i) who is 24 years or younger during the League Year, (ii) whose Salary Budget Charge is less than or equal to the MLS Senior Minimum Salary level, and (iii) so long as the MLS club does not exercise a right to recall the player during the remainder of the MLS Season. A player in Slot 31 is ineligible to compete in MLS competition except as a Short-Term Call Up and therefore shall not count against a club’s International Player limit."
Got all that? Essentially, players like Acito or midfielder Peter Molinari, listed below him as "Off Roster (Unavailable)", will only be a part of the NYCFC squad at MLS level if they sign Short-Term Agreements to move up. Expect to see Flax, Acito, Molinari, and others at or near the very bottom of that Club Roster Profile feature for NYCFC II when they get their MLS Next Pro season underway.
