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In the contract he signed with the Los Angeles Galaxy of Major League Soccer in 2007, David Beckham mandated a clause allowing him to purchase an expansion team in the league for only $25 million. He is now reportedly close to finalizing a deal that would bring an MLS club back to Miami for the first time since the Miami Fusion folded in 2001.
Beckham can afford it. He earned $42 million from sponsors -including Adidas, Coty, H&M, Sainsbury’s, Samsung and Breitling — in 2013 alone. Beckham’s 2013 $5.3 million pact with Paris Saint Germain of France’s Ligue 1 was donated to a children’s charity. In all, he is reportedly worth $300 million.
So what problems may Beckham encounter? While building the new soccer club’s stadium near the Miami Heat’s arena would help the team’s marketability, the county commissioners are opposed to having two stadiums in close proximity. They would rather Beckham and his business partners Simon Fuller and Brightstar Corporation owner Marcelo Claure break ground somewhere a bit farther away from one of the most hectic areas in the city.
Meetings are scheduled to take place Wednesday to discuss that matter. A news conference is also scheduled at which Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Gimenez will be in attendance. His attendance, along with MLS commissioner Don Garber, may go a long way in making stadium plans a little more concrete. ”We have been spending a lot of time — I was down [in Miami] last weekend, I’ve been down there a lot — working with them, working with potential ownership groups, trying to finalize a stadium a stadium plan. Right now, we’ve got a lot of work to do,” said Garber.
All professional sports-franchise expansions require heavy financial and political lifting. From stadium construction and front-office staffing to player and personnel acquisition, the bills mount. So Beckham, along with his current and expected future partners, will need to develop a strong financial plan to make this a success. That future help is Miami Heat star LeBron James. The two would likely be able to draw more fans alone than the entire Miami Fusion franchise was able to in 2000.
The two icons have long been in communication and interest is mutual in developing a long-term partnership here. But James will not be joining the dealings this week, or anytime over the next two weeks, as he and the Heat will be in Los Angeles Wednesday for the first of a six-game road trip extending through February 20th.
However, the big picture looks good with these two on board. In 2001, MLS was stumbling for success — only a handful of clubs were drawing interest from fans and they were in major cities like Los Angeles, New York, D.C., Chicago and Boston. In the Fusion’s last season in the league, their average attendance was 7,460 (a league-low) while the league’s total gate was 2,641,085. In 2013, MLS’ total gate was 6,010,384; nearly triple the total from 2000. The Seattle Sounders also set the all-time record for average attendance in 2013, bringing in 44,038 fans per game.
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It’s a whole new ball game now, and there is potential for a Miami-based soccer club to work. In 2015, MLS will introduce New York City Football Club and Orlando City Soccer Club as the 20th and 21st clubs. OCSC will represent the first Southeastern club since both Florida teams were folded in 2001. So perhaps as early as 2016, MLS will have three Southeast clubs (MLS has held talks about an Atlanta-based club) to bring the total to 23 MLS teams in total. This time around, however, it will likely work – especially in Miami.
