In professional sports, a franchise player is an athlete who is not simply the best player on their team, but a player that the team can build their franchise around for the foreseeable future. The misnomer that a franchise player is only "the best player on a team" disregards the fact that an inordinately bad team will undoubtedly still employ a player with superior skills, relative to his team. However, such a player could be so bad in comparison to players at-large that labeling such a player as a franchise player would be inappropriate. It is an elite status, but it is not necessarily a singular position; a large team such as an American football team might have a few franchise players at different positions. The term may be used alongside a particular position name to describe a player, such as a "franchise quarterback".
The origin of the term is unknown. It has frequently been applied since the advent of free agency in sports, which made it less likely for players to stay with one team for their entire career. A franchise player has the confidence of the organization and has the comfort of knowing that he will probably not be traded or released. Ideally, the franchise player will generate both wins and revenue for his team, and after a successful career, will be long remembered as a member of that team.
Franchise players may have some or all of the following specific characteristics:
They are signed to lucrative, multi-year contracts.
They may have "no-trade" or equivalent clauses written into their contracts, giving the player the power to veto any trade in which he is involved.
They may be promoted as the "face of the franchise" on a local and national basis. This can include the signing of product endorsement deals, media appearances and working with local charities.