David Beckham’s plans to bring MLS to Miami is "expected to finally reach a happy conclusion with the official granting of the team expected as early as late January," according to Michelle Kaufman of the MIAMI HERALD. The MLS BOG met in N.Y. on Thursday and "approved Beckham’s newly structured ownership group," which includes Jorge and Jose Mas and SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son. Beckham’s longtime business partner, Simon Fuller, "remains in the group," as does Sprint President & CEO Marcelo Claure. The role of chief negotiator and partner Tim Leiweke is "expected to be reduced, as well." Sources said that the Mas brothers and Son were "well-received by the owners, several of whom were familiar with them from the tech world and the Mas family’s recent bid to buy the Marlins." The stakes in the new investment group are "expected to be more evenly divided than they would have been" with Dodgers co-Owner Todd Boehly, who left the group. MLS leadership was "looking for more of a local representation in the Beckham ownership group, and they get that with the Mas brothers" (MIAMI HERALD, 12/15). ESPN.com's Jeff Carlisle noted the next challenge for the ownership group is to "make further progress on nailing down the stadium plan, which appeared to be nearing completion" when Miami Beckham United "agreed to purchase three acres from Miami-Dade County back in June." Combined with an adjoining six-acre parcel, MBU has "secured the site it needed to build a stadium in Miami's Overtown neighborhood." However, local landowner Bruce Matheson "filed a lawsuit alleging that the county violated the law by not opening up the sale to competitive bidding." The ongoing litigation with Matheson is "not expected to be a deal-breaker" (ESPN.com, 12/14).
