David Beckham is in the midst of another shopping spree; his most expensive purchase to date. Beckham is in the final stages of becoming the owner of a new Major League Soccer franchise. The team will most likely be located in Miami, Florida.
Beckham, who retired from
the MLS last spring, had a clause in his LA Galaxy contract permitting him to
purchase a new MLS franchise at a 25% discount. However, that option is set to
expire this December, therefore it is believed that this announcement will be
finalized in the next two months.
The biggest concerns at the
moment are the location of a stadium and its ownership group. Sources have
speculated that Beckham will compile a powerhouse-ownership group consisting of Bolivian billionaire, Marcelo Claure; Miami Dolphin’s owner, Steve Ross; and American Idol creator and businessman,
Simon Fuller.
In reviewing potential
locations for an expansion team, Beckham has placed Miami atop his list. This
past summer, Beckham and his business associates made several stops in South
Florida to scout potential stadiums for the franchise. One of the discussed
locations is Sun Life Stadium, the home of the Miami Dolphins. This stadium has
a booming capacity of 75,000, much more than desired capacity for a MLS
setting. The league has stressed its desire to utilize a stadium with more intimate
soccer-specific environment. A more fitting option includes Florida
International University’s football stadium that has a capacity of 20,000. Also noteworthy is the fact
that FIU’s stadium underwent major renovations in 2007.
The third and most
intriguing option is that University of Miami’s architecture students will have
the opportunity design a new stadium. This proposal came from a London
investment group, led by Alessandro Butini. Butini proposed the campaign,
“MLS-to-Miami”, which would include a partnership with the University of Miami
School of Architecture. Miami’s architecture students would have the ability to
develop ideas for a soccer-specific stadium. Since this week’s announcement of
the campaign, the website MIA4MLS.com
has been activated to provoke fan involvement during the design process.
This expenditure would come
as a privately funded operation. Butini had previously spoken to MLS commissioner,
Don Garber, about his idea. Commissioner Garber has cited that selecting a
stadium is the most important variable of the expansion process. Butini has
made it clear the ideal stadium would have a capacity of 18,000 to 20,000.
Additionally, Butini mentions the stadium would need to include, “good drainage, FIFA compliant, luxury suites and first-class media facilities.” In a presentation to students and faculty of Miami’s architecture program,
Butini claimed a project of this magnitude would amount to between $70 and $85
million.
Butini is confident that
Miami is the best location for an MLS team. He believes the city would be great
because of its changing demographics over the past 15 years. “Miami is an event-driven town, and my idea is to make a great fan experience
at the stadium so people will want to be there.”
The MLS currently has
19 teams but wishes to expand to 24 by the year 2020. Most recently, the New
York Yankees and Manchester City announced it would fund the expansion team,
New York City FC, for a fee of $100 million. NYC FC will compete starting in
2015. If all goes according to plan, Beckham’s team will be ready to play beginning in 2016.
This will not be
Miami’s first MLS team as the Miami Fusion, who were formed in 1998, competed
for four seasons before folding due to a lack of interest within the community.
Now, with MLS viewership and attendance on the rise, it seems a second attempt
at a Miami franchise is more stable. Currently, the MLS does not have teams
south of D.C. or east of Houston. An expansion team in Florida will provide the
MLS a refreshing attempt to revive the culture of professional soccer in
relatively unexplored region. With Beckham’s polarizing name and Miami’s
desirable location, it will not be difficult for a Miami expansion team to
attract initial interest amongst Floridians.
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