SUBSCRIPTION

ISL Season Draft Rules

1. OBJECTIVES

The ISL Draft is designed to achieve three major objectives:

  • First, to allow each of the ISL Teams’ General Managers (GMs) to strategically position their team for maximum success in the following season;
  • Second, to allow ISL’s less successful teams priority in selecting new team members, thereby establishing a more balanced starting position for the new season;
  • Third, to give the League’s new swimmers the possibility to change clubs after their first year in the ISL.

2. DEFINITIONS

ISL Draft Eligibility Requirements, is the set of requirements that must be met to be eligible to compete in the ISL Season (See TABLE 1, page 10).

ISL Transfer Window, applicable as of end of Season 3 (2021), is the period of 30 (thirty) calendar days after the end of the ISL Season when ISL Veteran Swimmers (subject to their specific existing contractual agreements) may finalise negotiations with GMs of any ISL team.

ISL Season Selection Cut Off, is the date that is 30 (thirty) calendar days after DAY 2 of the ISL Draft, by which the Team rosters must be completed.

ISL Rookie Swimmer is any swimmer who: i) meets the ISL Draft Eligibility Requirements; ii) expresses their desire to be included in the ISL Draft Pool; iii) is not an ISL Veteran Swimmer.

For the purposes of the ISL Draft in Season 3 (2021):

  • any ISL Swimmer who has not confirmed their commitment to remain on their current ISL Team must enter the ISL Draft as an ISL Rookie Swimmer

ISL Veteran Swimmer, is any existing ISL swimmer who: i) meets ISL’s Draft Eligibility Requirement; and ii) has completed the Minimum ISL Draft Contract Term (defined below).

For the purposes of the ISL Draft in Season 3 (2021):

  • any ISL Swimmer who has confirmed their commitment to remain on their current ISL Team, but was NOT retained, must enter the ISL Draft but as ISL Veteran Swimmer. Note that ISL Veterans can only enter in direct negotiations with the ISL Clubs after ISL Season 3 (2021)

ISL Draft Pool, is a pool of athletes that consists of i) any ISL Rookie Swimmers that have not completed Minimum ISL Draft Contract Term and ii) ISL Veteran Swimmers that were either not selected by their team from the previous season, or who decided to leave their ISL team but have not entered into a new contractual arrangement within the ISL Transfer Window.

Minimum ISL Draft Contract Term, is the minimum time period for an athlete to commit to an ISL Club through the ISL Draft selection process: 2 (two) ISL Seasons for Rookies, 1 (one) ISL Season for ISL Veterans

3. STRUCTURE & PROCESS

DAY 1

GMs’ existing Roster selection announcements

Round 1

  • GMs of each of the ISL teams make their presentation announcements of 5 preselected athletes ahead of additional Rounds. (IMPORTANT: each GM’s selection to be made publicly available 7 (seven) days prior to the ISL Draft)

Round 2

  • Each ISL team GM makes their announcement selecting 4 (four) additional swimmers from their prior season Roster

Round 3

  • Each ISL team GM makes their announcement selecting 3 (three) additional swimmers from their prior season Roster

Round 4

  • Each ISL team GM makes their announcement selecting 2 (two) additional swimmers from their prior season Roster

Round 5

  • Each ISL team GM makes their announcement selecting 1 (one) additional swimmer from their prior season Roster

For the avoidance of doubt, General Managers are NOT REQUIRED, but ALLOWED to retain UP TO 15 swimmers from their team rosters from the previous Season. 

1 Round of Rookie Selection

  • General Manager of each of the ISL teams selects 1 ISL Rookie Swimmer from the ISL Draft Pool in each selection

Order

GMs’ selections in each round are announced in the reverse order of their team’s ranking (See TABLE 2, page 11) in the prior ISL season: the team with the lowest ranking makes the first announcement, and The ISL Champions of the previous season, the last announcement, in each selection.

END OF DAY 1

Maximum swimmers (retained and selected): 160 (16 per Team)

On-line Voter Round

Upon completion of the DAY 1 GMs’ selection, online voters could select up to 1 (one) additional swimmer from the previous ISL Season’s team Rosters to remain on their team.

On-line Voter eligibility criteria:

  • Registration on the ISL online platform (email address, age, country of residence); and
  • Purchased subscription for either: i) ISL Full Season; or ii) Team’s Full Season Matches;
  • Each registered On-line Voter will have the ability to cast only 1 (one) vote for 1 (one) team of their choice.

On-line voter subscription to be open at the same time, or shortly after the formal announcement of the ISL Draft

Upon conclusion of DAY 1 of the ISL Draft, all ISL Veteran Swimmers that were not selected, and ISL Rookie Swimmers that opted out after 1 year, will enter the ISL Draft Pool

DAY 2

Announcement of results of On-line Voter Selection

  • ISL announces the results of the on-line voting

Rounds 1 to 14: GMs’ ISL Draft picks

  • General Managers of respective ISL teams to select 1 swimmer from the ISL Draft Pool in each respective selection Round

Order

Round 1

  • GM of the team with the lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 1st pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 2nd lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 2nd pick from the ISL Draft pool

Round 2

  • GM of the team with the lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 1st pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 2nd lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 2nd pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 3rd lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 3rd pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 4th lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 4th pick from the ISL Draft pool

Round 3

  • GM of the team with the lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 1st pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 2nd lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 2nd pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 3rd lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 3rd pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 4th lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 4th pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 5th lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 5th pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 6th lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 6th pick from the ISL Draft pool

Round 4

  • GM of the team with the lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 1st pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 2nd lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 2nd pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 3rd lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 3rd pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 4th lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 4th pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 5th lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 5th pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 6th lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 6th pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 7th lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 7th pick from the ISL Draft pool

GM of the team with the 8th lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 8th pick from the ISL Draft pool

Rounds 5-10

  • GM of the team with the lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 1st pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 2nd lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 2nd pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 3rd lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 3rd pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 4th lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 4th pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 5th lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 5th pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 6th lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 6th pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 7th lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 7th pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 8th lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 8th pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 9th lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 9th pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 10th lowest ranking (prior ISL season’s Winner) in prior ISL season has the 10th pick from the ISL Draft pool

Round 11

  • GM of the team with the 3rd lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 1st pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 4th lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 2nd pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 5th lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 3rd pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 6th lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 4th pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 7th lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 5th pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 8th lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 6th pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 9th lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 7th pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 10th lowest ranking (prior ISL season’s Winner) in prior ISL season has the 8th pick from the ISL Draft pool

Round 12

  • GM of the team with the 5th lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 1st pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 6th lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 2nd pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 7th lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 3rd pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 8th lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 4th pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 9th lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 5th pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 10th lowest ranking (prior ISL season’s Winner) in prior ISL season has the 6th pick from the ISL Draft pool

Round 13

  • GM of the team with the 7th lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 1st pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 8th lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 2nd pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 9th lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 3rd pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 10th lowest ranking (prior ISL season’s Winner) in prior ISL season has the 4th pick from the ISL Draft pool

Round 14

  • GM of the team with the 9th lowest ranking in prior ISL season has the 1st pick from the ISL Draft pool
  • GM of the team with the 10th lowest ranking (prior ISL season’s Winner) in prior ISL season has the 2nd pick from the ISL Draft pool

END OF DAY 2

Maximum swimmers (selected): 110 (11 per team)

Based on the results of DAY 1, on-line Voter selection and the 14 Rounds of GMs’ ISL Draft picks of DAY 2, a maximum of 270 (two hundred and seventy) swimmers will have been selected.  That number can be smaller, depending on the number of Veteran Swimmers that were not retained by GMs at the end of DAY 1.

4. FURTHER SELECTION PROCESS

For 30 (thirty) calendar days following the completion of the ISL Draft (the ISL Season Selection Cut Off), GMs may be required to complete their respective teams through individual negotiations with the remaining ISL Rookie Swimmers and ISL Veteran Swimmers from the ISL Draft Pool only.

IMPORTANT NOTE: General Managers must complete their team Rosters within a 30-day period, to allow timely receipt of visa, bookings for transportation, etc.

ISL Team’s completion eligibility requirement

To be allowed to participate in the Season, an ISL team must secure a roster consisting of a minimum of 28 (twenty-eight) swimmers (14 Women & 14 Men), as per the ISL Gender Equality requirement.

5. ADDITIONAL QUALIFICATIONS & CONSIDERATIONS

Each ISL Rookie is required to commit to the Minimum ISL Draft Contract Term.  Following completion of the first year of the ISL Draft Contract Term, ISL Rookie: i) has the possibility to “opt out” of their contract with their ISL Club; or ii) may not be retained by their ISL Club General Manager.  In each case, the ISL Rookie who has either “opted out” of, or was not retained by, their current ISL Club shall return to the ISL Draft Pool as an ISL Rookie (with the obligation to complete the Minimum ISL Draft Contract Term).  For the avoidance of doubt, an ISL Rookie cannot engage in any negotiations with any ISL Club prior to completing the Minimum ISL Draft Contrat Term and shall remain in the ISL Draft Pool (See FIGURE 1, page 9).

In addition, it is expressly determined that any ISL Rookie Swimmer who, for reasons outside of their control, including, inter alia, illness, injury, or national federation restrictions, is unable to compete in their second consecutive ISL season may be considered an ISL Veteran Swimmer.  ISL has the right to request proof of such reason(s) from the ISL Rookie Swimmer. ISL’s Ethics and Selection Committee reserves the right to amend the criteria for selection of ISL Veteran Swimmers.

6. NON-DISCRIMINATION AND PARTICIPATION REQUIREMENTS

The International Swimming League does not and shall not discriminate on the basis of race, color, or religion (creed).  ISL does not have separate “Male” and “Female” prize money pools.  ISL adheres to full gender equality, e.g. most valuable swimmers are ranked in accordance with their individual scores achieved in their respective events, regardless of gender.  ISL reserves the right to decline registration to any swimmer deemed ineligible based on the age (ISL Swimmers must be at least 18 years of age at the time of their registration).  ISL has a policy of zero tolerance towards violations of anti-doping rules.

FIGURE 1: ILLUSTRATIVE EXAMPLE OF THE ISL DRAFT DECISION MAKING & SELECTION PROCESS

TABLE 1: ISL DRAFT SEASON 3 (2021) – QUALIFICATION TIMES IN MAIN (MT) AND ALTERNATIVE (YD) COURSE POOL

The athletes must achieve their times between the 1st of January 2018 and the 31st of May 2021.

An athlete can declare / achieve qualification times, in any course.

In order to be eligible for the ISL Draft registration, you must have achieved results that are equal to, or better than, the qualification times in at least 2 (two) ISL competition events.

For example: 50m Backstroke and 100m Backstroke (two events); or 100m Freestyle and 100m Butterfly and 200m Butterfly (three events), etc.

It is important to note that having achieved better results in one event, but in different competition formats, is considered as having achieved eligibility only in 1 (one) event. 

For example: qualification times achieved in 50m Butterfly (SHORT COURSE) and 50m Butterfly (LONG COURSE), at different competitions are considered as having achieved qualification time in 1 (one) event only. 

TABLE 2: ISL SEASON 2 (2020) TEAM RANKINGS

  1. CALI CONDORS (Winner)
  2. ENERGY STANDARD
  3. LONDON ROAR
  4. LA CURRENT
  5. IRON
  6. TOKYO KING FROGS
  7. TORONTO TITANS
  8. NY BREAKERS
  9. DC TRIDENT
  10. AQUA CENTURIONS (lowest ranking)