In a BBC interview Wednesday in London, international soccer star and former England team captain David Beckham announced to the world he is "committed to the MLS, committed to growing 'football' in the U.S." ... and he's made up his mind Miami is where he wants his involvement to be.
Beckham and his wife Victoria have been vocal in their love of the South Beach lifestyle, the region's hunger for winning and the enthusiastic friends they've made in Miami.
In August, the Huffington Post reported that Victoria Beckham was "positively drooling" at the prospect of living in the grand Ocean Drive home where Italian fashion designer Gianni Versace was shot dead on his doorstep in 1997.
"We feel like the city wants and needs us," David Beckham said.
As Sunshine State News reported in June, the 38-year-old's option to purchase a franchise is part of the financial package he negotiated when he joined LA Galaxy as a player in 2007.
Beckham's opportunity specified buying an MLS expansion team at a reduced cost, reportedly $25 million instead of the going rate of $100 million. He has confirmed his interest in exercising his option. In June he said Miami wasn't the only city he was considering, but it's "a thrill just to be in the center of all this."
But even before the Beckham interview, MLS Executive Vice President Dan Courtemanche went a long way toward confirming the betrothal of the soccer icon to Miami when he told AP this week, We know that Miami is one of the most passionate soccer markets in North America. We have met with David Beckham regarding ownership of an expansion team, and we look forward to David one day owning an MLS club.
"Miami, if confirmed, would be the third of the planned five expansion teams ..."
The Sunshine State actually has a good shot at getting two teams back in MLS, according to the BBC, with Orlando City -- formerly the Austin Aztex franchise and coached by former Everton and Stoke midfielder Adrian Heath -- expected to have its membership rubber-stamped fairly soon.
Beckham reportedly is looking to raise several hundred million dollars of investment to fund the setup costs, including putting together the squad of players and building a stadium.
His business partner is Simon Fuller, the American Idol creator and driving force in franchise negotiations with MLS. Fuller will be a significant shareholder, a source close to the negotiations says. Beckham is looking to sell stakes in the team to other investors, and has already had expressions of interest from businessmen globally.
One of them likely will be Marcelo Claure, the Bolivian billionaire owner of Brightstar Communications. Beckham sat courtside during Game 5 of the Miami Heat-Indiana Pacers playoffs as Claure's guest. It was soccer-savvy Claure, with connections to Barcelona Football Club, who tried in 2009 to bring an MLS team to Miami -- and he admits he still wants to.
Beckham has said he would like the team to debut in three years, meaning it would likely be playing in an existing stadium.
At present there are 19 MLS teams. League Commissioner Don Garber hopes to expand that number to 24 by the 2020 season. A 20th team is already in place to begin playing in 2015 after Premier League club Manchester City and its partner, the New York Yankees, paid an expansion fee of $100 million to launch New York City FC.
Reach Nancy Smith at nsmith@sunshinestatenews.com or at 228-282-2423.
