David Martinez’s 50% ownership by River, who reportedly don’t want to sell, could throw a wrench into this deal. Even more awkward considering Atlanta United is/has already worked with River in recent days to sign Santiago Sosa. https://twitter.com/juancortese/status/1358181029618606086

Typically in Italy, where co-ownership began in the late 50s, was that every year the teams would either agree to keep the 50/50 split going, or they’d hold a blind auction to acquire the other 50%. This dispute could trigger a similar action. Need @NickAliffi’s expertise here

The problem is that if Defensa/River are forced to do this, it changes the net profits from a deal and could affect the price — something Atlanta is unlikely to budge on considering MLS budget rules. Maybe there are ways ATL can sweeten the deal for River that would assuage them

If this all sounds dumb, that’s because it is. It was originally supposed to help small clubs retain value of the players they developed, but it turned into the opposite, allowing the big clubs to keep their hands in every pocket. The practice was abolished in Italy ~6 years ago.