Build it like Beckham, Inter-Miami target big names

Listen to this article:

Former soccer player and MLS team owner David Beckham speaks during an interview in the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York, U.S., February 26, 2020. REUTERS/Carlo Allegri

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are potential targets for Inter-Miami, co-owner David Beckham said on Wednesday, underscoring his team’s global ambition as they prepare to make their long-awaited Major League Soccer debut this weekend.

Seven years after a tortuous process began, Beckham’s “project” will finally take the field on Sunday when Inter-Miami travel to Los Angeles to face LAFC in their first MLS regular season game.

More than 13 years since he shocked the soccer world by turning his back on Real Madrid to sign with the Los Angeles Galaxy, Beckham remains the biggest name in Major League Soccer.

But maybe not for long, the former England and Manchester United captain hinting his club might take a page from the Galaxy playbook he helped write and go out and sign the game’s biggest stars.

“We really believe in the roster we have, the players that we have we’re really happy with but we have also talked about if we have the opportunity to bring in big name players from Europe into our city we will do that,” Beckham told Reuters.

“Every team in the world would want Messi and Ronaldo in their teams.

“But we always talked about us being different from any other team, which I am sure every other owner says exactly the same thing,” Beckham added.

“So that’s what we will try to do and if we have the opportunity to bring big name players in then great we’re lucky we have an ownership group that has that vision and wants to succeed and has that competitiveness where we want the best players.”

MLS will celebrate its 25th anniversary this season and the league was reminded again on Wednesday of the impact Beckham has had on the league.

Commissioner Don Garber started the day by telling a news conference that; “Without David Major League Soccer probably would not be what it is today”.

The evidence was not hard to find with media outlets from around the world making the trip to New York to interview Beckham, who as always charmed the crowd with his candor and boyish smile.

As part of his deal for joining the Galaxy Beckham was given the chance to buy into an MLS franchise at a reduced price.

Array
(
    [post_type] => post
    [post_status] => publish
    [orderby] => date
    [order] => DESC
    [update_post_term_cache] => 
    [update_post_meta_cache] => 
    [cache_results] => 
    [category__in] => 1
    [posts_per_page] => 4
    [offset] => 0
    [no_found_rows] => 1
    [date_query] => Array
        (
            [0] => Array
                (
                    [after] => Array
                        (
                            [year] => 2023
                            [month] => 12
                            [day] => 29
                        )

                    [inclusive] => 1
                )

        )

)

No Posts found for specific category