It has been confirmed that David Beckham is to own a new
MLS franchise in Miami.
The former Manchester United and Real Madrid midfielder
retired from football at the end of last season following a short stint with
Paris Saint-Germain.
Beckham spent five years with MLS outfit with LA Galaxy
between 2007 and 2012, with an option to purchase a franchise believed to have
been included in his contract with the American league.
He is the first former professional sportsman to take
ownership of a side in MLS.
"We appreciate all that David has done as a player,
an ambassador and as a global icon to help grow Major League Soccer," MLS
commissioner Don Garber said.
"We are thrilled that he will be an owner, and we
look forward to him helping us achieve our goal of being one of the top soccer
leagues in the world."
When asked why he had chosen Miami as the base for his
MLS outfit, Beckham said: "Why not?
"All joking aside, for me I wanted to create a team
that we can start from scratch. I know there was a team here 10 years ago and,
unfortunately, they folded.
"I wanted to create a team that can be very
personal. It's a big decision, but it's a very personal one. I want to make
this my team.
"I've worked hard through my whole career, and I'm
going to work hard for this city.
"I'm looking forward to spending a lot more time
here."
Miami-Dade County mayor Carlos A. Jimenez confirmed
discussions had begun with a view to identifying a site for a new stadium for
the franchise, and Beckham added that the project would require no public
funding.
"We don't want public funding," he added.
"We will fund the stadium ourselves. It's something we have worked very
hard to get to this stage where we can fund the stadium ourselves.
"We want to create a stadium, a soccer team, a
football club that is the people's football club.
"This is an exciting time for myself, my family,
friends and partners and something that we're really looking forward to
bringing to Miami."
Asked what calibre of player fans of the new team could
expect to be watching, Beckham hinted: "We will want to bring some of the
best players to Miami to play for this team. I have seen what happens when you
bring great players in.
"Yes, we will bring great players in. The fortunate
thing about my career is players are already interested in coming to Miami.
"The one thing I want to achieve, is to set up a
kids academy. We want local talent, not just great players from abroad.
"The US team - the way they have improved - has been
incredible and the only way that will continue is to have good academies."
Culled from Soccerway
