Beckham's Miami-MLS dream was nearly dead before Mas (l) joined the ownership groupGetty Images
MLS yesterday awarded an expansion franchise to David Beckham, who confirmed he will "oversee the soccer aspect of the team, and plans to be a very hands-on owner," according to Kaufman & Hanks of the MIAMI HERALD. Sources said that Beckham and his partners "paid between" $50M-75M for the team and "plan to spend" another $200M on the stadium, academy and team operations. The new team is "scheduled to begin play" in '20, "probably at a temporary site until the permanent stadium is ready" in '21. Hard Rock Stadium, FIU Stadium and Marlins Park were "mentioned as possible temporary sites, or some combination of the three." The team name, logo and colors will be "rolled out in the next few months, with input from fans.There are "plans to build a world-class academy with at least 10 fields that can also be used for visiting national and club teams." The team is "expected to begin" playing in '21 at a 25,000-seat, $200M privately-funded stadium to be built in Overtown, although owners are "still exploring other sites." The stadium is "being designed" by Populous (MIAMI HERALD, 1/30). In N.Y., Nick Madigan notes MLS "did little to disguise its excitement." The league is "promising to put its full weight behind the Beckham team" (N.Y. TIMES, 1/30). In West Palm Beach, Hal Habib notes despite the focus on Overtown, Beckham’s group "owns only a portion of the land necessary, there’s a court battle involved and other venues remain possibilities" (PALM BEACH POST, 1/30). The AP wrote the event was "more pep rally than news conference" and was "intentionally benign in many respects" (AP, 1/29). In Ft. Lauderdale, Craig Davis notes it was a "carnival-like gathering in downtown" and "elicited rousing chanting and cheers from hundreds of soccer enthusiasts" (South Florida SUN SENTINEL, 1/30).
GIVE ME MAS: The SUN SENTINEL's Davis writes Beckham and his partner, Sprint CEO Marcelo Claure "confided that they were on the brink of scrapping the entire enterprise at a meeting" in December, but the undertaking was "salvaged by the addition" of MasTec co-Founders Jorge and Jose Mas to the ownership group. With the aid of the Mas brothers, large parcels of land "capable of supporting 10 or more soccer fields are already being considered" (South Florida SUN SENTINEL, 1/30). In Ft. Lauderdale, Dave Hyde in a front-page piece writes the Miami-MLS dream "was dead" in December before the Mas brothers joined. Beckham: "We tried everything." MLS Commissioner Don Garber "reached out to Jorge Mas, who tried to buy the Marlins," and everyone "agreed to meet a couple of days later." Garber said, "That's how it came to life." Mas added, "After that, in two or three weeks, we put all this together." The star "was Mas" as he "brought most of the energy." Hyde: "You wonder: Is baseball's loss soccer's game-changing gain?" Mas "always was the best choice to own the Marlins." He "doesn't just know the establishment." He "is the establishment" (South Florida SUN SENTINEL, 1/30). Mas said yesterday that his failed deal to buy the Marlins "led to his Miami soccer bid." In the Marlins pursuit, Mas said that he "shared bankers with some MLS owners" (MIAMI HERALD, 1/30). PROSOCCERUSA.com's Franco Panizo noted their "last-ditch effort proved successful." Mas: "Over an eight-week period, we put it all together" (PROSOCCERUSA.com, 1/29). ESPN.com's Paul Tenorio noted the Mas brothers "might have received the grandest ovation, arguably bigger even than Beckham's" during the event (ESPN.com, 1/29).
MIAMI NICE: In Miami, Greg Cote notes the city becomes the 10th U.S. city or metropolitan region to "have all of the big four American professional team sports -- football, baseball, basketball and hockey -- plus a team in the country's premier soccer league." This was the "biggest South Florida civic announcement of its kind in a quarter century, since the area landed" MLB and NHL teams at the same time in the early 90's (MIAMI HERALD, 1/30). ESPN.com's Tenorio wrote prestige is "part, but not all, of what makes Miami such a perfect fit for MLS." The growth of MLS has "come in part from the magnetism of major markets." Now Beckham "will launch a team in a city capable of bringing more big names to the league." There is "something about Miami that pulls in stars at almost the same rate they flock to Tinseltown" (ESPN.com, 1/29). A MIAMI HERALD editorial states, "Older, wiser and a bit roughed up, Beckham announced the realization of his dream with the help of his new local financial team. ... We praise Beckham for his perseverance and his insistence that Miami is the right place" (MIAMI HERALD, 1/30).
