I guess this means the new cash transfer mechanism has effectively raised the salary cap

This summer brought MLS to more than $410m spent on trades and transfers in 2026, which is more than double the 2023 total. Much of this growth came between 2024 and 2025, with the cash-for-player system accounting for $41m in transfers that were not previously possible. The introduction of this rule has not replaced GAM spending, but rather complemented it. MLS allows clubs to convert up to $3m in eligible transfer revenue to GAM per year, and the introduction of the cash-for-player rule has made hitting that $3m mark significantly easier. The end result: there’s much more GAM circulating the league now, enabling more teams to buy down cap hits, complete trades and do everything else a team can do with those funds.