David Beckham s dream of becoming a football club owner is finally a reality after his consortium was granted a licence for an MLS franchise in Miami.
MLS commissioner Don Garber confirmed the news at a media conference on Monday, concluding a journey Beckham embarked upon in February 2014 when he exercised an option to own an expansion team that was included in his LA Galaxy contract back in 2007.
Futbol Miami s debut season in MLS is yet to be finalised but Beckham is targeting the 2020 campaign and hopes to bring in major names from European football, while cultivating youth talent.
I ve had many phone calls from many different, top players saying: I m in , said the former Manchester United and Real Madrid star, which featured a boisterous bunch of Miami supporters chanting his name.
It’s official! MLS is coming to Miami.
— Major League Soccer (@MLS)
Yes, we want to build a team and bring in top players from Europe but the thing we are most interested in is the homegrown talent.
We will bring a state of the art academy. I ve seen that when you bring homegrown kids into a team like this, that is when a community is built and you are proud of your team.
Then they go on and represent their countries. That is when we will sit back and say: Job done. That is when we will be proud of our team.
Sealing planning permission for a home stadium proved a major stumbling block until Beckham s group finalised a project last year that will see a 25,000-seat arena built in Miami s urban core, while it is hoped the team can capitalise upon the area s sizable Latino population.
Beckham spoke after a video of celebrities and sports stars, including Jay-Z, Will Smith, Jennifer Lopez, Tom Brady, Neymar and Usain Bolt, wishing Futbol Miami well.
This is something that has been a dream for many, many years. It s a sport that I ve loved for many, many years, he said.
