Major League Soccer Commissioner Don Garber on Tuesday revealed that David Beckham's agreement to purchase an expansion team at a discounted rate of $25M "expires on Dec. 31," according to Brian Straus of SPORTS ILLUSTRATED. But Beckham "needs more capital to secure the soccer specific stadium he hopes to build," and the MLS BOG "will not approve Beckham as a club owner and partner until he finalizes a stadium plan." Garber said that he "could imagine Miami being aboard" in '17 or '18. Straus wrote that timeline "would appear" to give Beckham "ample time." There is "almost no chance" MLS will "cut ties if he's unable to secure a stadium deal over the next six weeks." MLS "could either extend the initial agreement or renegotiate for a slightly higher expansion fee" (SPORTS ILLUSTRATED, 11/20).
THE KING AND I: The AP's Tom Reynolds reported NBA Miami Heat F LeBron James said of possibly teaming up with Beckham to purchase an MLS franchise in Miami, "I wish it was easy. We're working on it. We'll see what happens" (AP, 11/20).
