Report: Beckham's Miami MLS Expansion Team Set for Monday Announcement
More than four years after David Beckham announced his intention to operate an MLS expansion franchise in Miami, the league has approved Beckham’s bid, according to the Miami Herald.
A spokesman for the city’s mayor told the Herald that an event will be held Monday to announce the league’s approval.
Beckham’s player contract with MLS gave him the option to buy an expansion franchise for $25 million and the league announced in February 2014 that Miami had been tentatively approved as the location. The deal was contingent upon Beckham securing a site for stadium in a centrally located area of Miami. Building a stadium became a major headache for the group, though, leading to rumors that Beckham would consider moving the team to Las Vegas.
Beckham and his initial group of investors first targeted a site in PortMiami, an island just off downtown. Other potential sites, including on the downtown waterfront, also fell through before the group secured a parcel of land in the Overtown neighborhood, just north of downtown. The stadium, just off the Miami river, will seat 25,000 fans and will be privately financed.
