Retention

Retention is a franchise's right to keep a limited number of players from its squad before a mega auction, rather than releasing them into the pool.

The league sets how many may be kept, usually a mix of capped and uncapped players, and how much each retention costs against the purse. The first retention is the most expensive and the cost falls with each subsequent one. The players kept never reach the auction, so a club with a settled core can protect it, at the price of arriving at the auction with far less to spend. Some leagues let clubs convert unused retention slots into right-to-match cards instead.

The decision is the hardest of the off-season. Retaining a star at a fixed cost is safe but may be more than he would fetch at auction; releasing him and trying to buy him back is cheaper if it works and disastrous if a rival outbids you. Age matters too. A 34-year-old retained for three seasons is a bet on how he ages, and a manager who has watched his ratings slide will think twice.

In Masterstroke: every third season the mega auction tears the league up. Retain, release and bid, and the board sets your target the morning after, so what you built is what you are judged on.