Major League Soccer

DAVID BECKHAM is the proud owner of Inter Miami, which is now home to arguably the greatest player of all time.Becks made a huge splash this summer as his club completed the signing of Lionel Messi after his release by PSG.
Lionel Messi is Inter Miami’s marquee new signingCredit: Getty
David Beckham, pictured with wife Victoria, says signing Messi gave him the same buzz that running out at Old Trafford used toCredit: EPA
And the former England captain told The Athletic: “This will be up there with the biggest moves in American sporting history.
“And we’re talking about the biggest sporting market in the world.
“Bringing Leo Messi to Inter Miami, to MLS, the year after he wins the World Cup, to a team that is three years old… it’s a hell of an achievement.
“I never thought I would have the same feeling as an owner as I had when I was a player.
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“When I got the phone call, I had the feeling I had when I walked out at Old Trafford or Wembley.
“I was like, ‘We’ve just beaten all competition to sign the greatest player to ever play our game’.”
It was a transfer that had been set in motion 16 years earlier.
As part of Beckham’s deal to join LA Galaxy from Real Madrid in 2007, the former England captain was given the option of buying an MLS franchise anywhere except New York City for £20m after he finished playing.
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Lionel Messi was unveiled two weeks ago as an Inter Miami playerCredit: Alamy
Beckham said his own experiences in the MLS helped to convince Messi to make the moveCredit: Reuters
Beckham moved to LA Galaxy when he was just 32Credit: AFP
Just a year after his retirement in 2013, Becks would activate the clause, with the approval for Inter Miami arriving in 2018.
In September 2019, months before Inter Miami would even play their first MLS match, Beckham was putting the wheels in motion for the signing of Messi.
He said: “We got on a plane and flew to Barcelona from London secretly.
“We snuck into a hotel, met Jorge Messi [Lionel’s dad and agent) and started the conversation.
“It purely went, ‘We would love your son to play for our team one day.
“We know he can’t come yet, but one day we would love to have Leo in Miami’.”
He added that Inter Miami’s managing owner Jorge Mas was key in planting the seed in Messi’s head.
Beckham commented: “Then obviously Jorge did an incredible job creating a narrative around what he could do for the sport in this country, what he could do for MLS and what he could do for Inter Miami.”
And he mentioned that his own move to the US helped to sway Messi to make the decision.
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Beckham said: “I think what helped with Leo is he’d seen my journey and what was possible.
“When I made the move, I was 32 and had come from Real Madrid.
“I got criticism because I was going to a league that had 13, 14 teams and only six stadiums that were soccer-specific.
“I think Leo had seen that and thought, ‘OK, this is an opportunity’.”
On June 7, Messi’s move to Inter Miami was announced and Beckham remembers exactly where he was at the time.
He said: “I was in Japan with the family and woke up at 5am because my phone kept vibrating.
“My wife was like, ‘Really?! Turn your phone off!’.
“I look on my phone and I’m like, ‘What’s happened? Something’s happened!’.
“I put my glasses on and I’m like, ‘Leo’s coming! It’s done! He has announced it!’.
“My wife was like, ‘What do you mean he has announced it?’.
“I said, ‘He has gone on TV and said he’s coming to Inter Miami!’.
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“I get goosebumps talking about it.”
And Messi’s arrival seems to have been worth the wait, with the Argentine reducing Becks to tears with his last-gasp debut winner before scoring two more in his second game for the club.
Lionel Messi has already played a starring role since his move to FloridaCredit: Getty
Messi netted a last minute free kick winner on his debut against Cruz AzulCredit: Reuters More

DAVID BECKHAM has opened up about his decision to sack former team-mate Phil Neville as Inter Miami head coach.Neville, 46, was dismissed from his position last month after the Herons fell to rock bottom of the MLS Eastern Conference.
Neville was sacked at the beginning of JuneCredit: Getty
Beckham has admitted it was a ‘tough’ decision to sack his former team-mateCredit: Getty
And Beckham, 48, has admitted that it was a “tough” decision to make.
In an interview with The Athletic, the England and Manchester United legend said: “Yes, we have a great brand, but the most important thing is what we do on the pitch.
“Unfortunately as an owner, you realise you have to make tough decisions. We had Diego Alonso in the first season and scraped through to the play-offs.
“I thought it was the right time to make a change. I felt culturally we weren’t quite there and I went back to my roots.
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“I went back to what I know and to thinking, ‘We need someone in this building who is going to be over everything — turn up at 6am and leave at 7pm, work, bring a culture and give everything, not just to Inter Miami, but to the city and really dive in with his family’.
“That’s exactly what Phil did.
“I’ve known Phil for a long, long time, so bringing him in was an important move and he did an incredible job over the couple of years he was here, with the players and the staff.
“He brought a seriousness that we didn’t have. But on the field, we weren’t quite right and, unfortunately, we felt there needed to be a change.
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“He knew it was coming and took it like a gentleman.”
Almost one month after Neville’s departure, former Barcelona manager Gerardo ‘Tata’ Martino was appointed as Inter Miami’s new head coach.
The MLS side have since signed several ex-Barca stars, including seven-time Ballon d’Or winner Lionel Messi.
Messi marked his Inter Miami debut with a stunning free kick to lead his side to a 2-1 win over Cruz Azul.
Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba have also joined the Herons on a permanent basis this summer. More

LIONEL MESSI signing for Inter Miami felt as good as walking out at Old Trafford, admits David Beckham.Golden Balls finally secured the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner’s signature earlier this summer after a decade of plotting.
Lionel Messi has had an amazing start to life at Inter MiamiCredit: AFP
Beckham has watched Messi’s alongside wife VictoriaCredit: Getty
Golden Balls spent a decade planning to recruit the Argentine maestroCredit: AFP
Messi, 36, has instantly looked right at home in the US – scoring three times in his opening two matches and playing with a constant smile on his face.
He marked his debut with a stunning last minute free-kick winner that grabbed America’s attention and left Beckham in tears.
His incredible arrival has marked the culmination of a long journey for Becks and co-owners Jorge and Jose Mas.
“I never thought I would have the same feeling as an owner as I had when I was a player,” Beckham told The Athletic.
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“When I got the phone call, I had the feeling I had when I walked out at Old Trafford or Wembley. I was like, ‘We’ve just beaten all competition to sign the greatest player to ever play our game’.”
Messi announced in early June that he’d be joining the MLS side, snubbing an even more lucrative offer from Saudi Arabia in the process.
Beckham, 48, was in Japan with ex-Spice Girl wife Victoria at the time, and could scarcely believe that a decade of planning had come to fruition.
He said: “I was in Japan with the family and woke up at 5am because my phone kept vibrating. My wife was like, ‘Really?! Turn your phone off!’. I look on my phone and I’m like, ‘What’s happened? Something’s happened!’.
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Beckham spent many years excelling at Old TraffordCredit: PA:Press Association
Messi was unveiled at Inter Miami earlier this monthCredit: Getty
Beckham had tears of joy in his eyes after Messi’s last-gasp debut winner
“I put my glasses on and I’m like, ‘Leo’s coming! It’s done! He has announced it!’. My wife was like, ‘What do you mean he has announced it?’. I said, ‘He has gone on TV and said he’s coming to Inter Miami!’. I get goosebumps talking about it.”
Beckham left European football aged 32 in 2007, departing Real Madrid for a new life in Los Angeles with LA Galaxy.
The deal included a $25million (£19.5m) option to buy an MLS expansion franchise of his own, anywhere outside of New York.
He began working on his Inter Miami vision the day after hanging up his boots in 2014, with Messi never far from his mind.
Becks revealed: “It all came from a conversation over a glass of wine at dinner.
“I turn to Jorge and say, ‘One day, we need Messi to come to our club’. It was probably when we first met. I actually found on my phone the other day one of the first presentations that (advertising agency) Doubleday & Cartwright did — they mocked up one of the jerseys with the logo on and Leo was wearing it.
“That was 10 years ago. So it was always in my mind. I suppose every owner of a sports franchise thinks, ‘We want to bring the best players to our club’. Does it happen for everyone? Of course not.
“But we were sat at dinner and we were like, ‘OK, if we could bring Leo for our market, for our fans, for this part of the world, there’s no one better’.”
Inter Miami’s road to MLS was full of complications, even long before their 2020 debut in the competition.
They still play in Fort Lauderdale – around 35 miles from their desired Miami Freedom Park location – with club bosses targeting a 2025 move to their new stadium.
Beckham’s team still haven’t produced on the pitch, having already sacked managers Diego Alonso and Phil Neville during their short existence.
Now under former Barcelona boss Tata Martino, joined by his old Camp Nou icons Messi, Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba, the sky is the limit for Inter Miami.
And Beckham is targeting domination on and off the pitch.
On what he wants his ambitious brand to look like, he cited the New York Yankees, before saying: “I want people walking around in our baseball caps knowing that’s a Miami cap, that’s a Miami brand.
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“Even if you’re not a soccer fan, you want to wear the jersey and the cap.”
Messi’s arrival has put Inter Miami on the global stage – and a decade into the project, Beckham feels like he’s finally getting started.
Messi’s explosive Inter Miami arrival has put America on noticeCredit: Getty More

INTER MILAN fans left the stadium in droves the moment Lionel Messi was subbed off against Atlanta United.The superstar scored twice and grabbed an assist to continue his electric start in MLS.
Inter Miami fans poured out of the stadium after Lionel Messi was subbed against AtlantaCredit: Twitter @M30Xtra
Timelapse video of Inter Miami fans pouring out of the DRV PNK after Messi subs off in 77th minute. The downside of GOAT Watching. 🐐pic.twitter.com/cYB4u42Fcj— Men in Blazers (@MenInBlazers) July 26, 2023

Messi scored twice in the matchCredit: Getty
Messi previously wowed the crowd, including David Beckham, by scoring a last-minute free-kick on his debut to beat Cruz Azul.
Fans showed their adoration for Messi and packed out the DRVPNK stadium for the visit of Atlanta to catch a glimpse of the 36-year-old.
But it seems Messi was the sole reason many attended, as the stadium quickly emptied following his substitution after 77 minutes.
Footage showed thousands of fans all heading for the exit with the three points already wrapped up.
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Inter Miami won 4-0 to make it two out of two wins since Messi’s arrival.
One fan left his seat and invaded the pitch in an attempt to greet Messi as he headed for the dugout.
Security intervened to prevent the supporter from achieving his goal of taking a selfie with the World Cup winner.
Messi has had an eventful start to life at Inter Miami as even his unveiling was overshadowed by thunderstorms.
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He also had to comfort DJ Khaled’s son as he was reduced to tears while acting as a mascot ahead of the game against Atlanta.
But the Argentine has received a warm welcome and appears to get on very well with Beckham, who he reduced to fits of laughter with one of his celebrations.
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LIONEL MESSI’S new goal celebration had David Beckham grinning from ear to ear last night.The Argentine superstar has enjoyed an incredible start to life at Inter Miami.
Lionel Messi performed his ‘hold my beer’ celebrationCredit: Twitter
Messi directed his celebration at Inter Miami owner David BeckhamCredit: Twitter
The 36-year-old’s celebration was directed at David BeckhamCredit: Twitter
His stunning debut free-kick winner against Cruz Azul last Friday was always going to be tough to top in his sophomore outing.
But the 36-year-old gave it his best shot, inspiring what had previously been MLS’ worst team to a crushing 4-0 demolition of 2018 champions Atlanta United.
Messi scored twice within the opening 22 minutes of the contest.
And after one of his strikes, the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner turned to owner Beckham.
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He stopped dramatically, before outstretching his arm and cupping his fingers, in what has been dubbed his “hold my beer” celebration.
Messi held a dramatic pose before smiling at Becks.
And the former Manchester United and England star loved it, barely containing his grin.
Fans also adored Messi’s new celebration, with one writing: “You just gotta love this guy.”
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A second tweeted: “this is the best celebration.”
And a third joked: “Messi holding Ronaldo’s world cup.”
Others likened the celebration to Darth Vader’s force choke.
One commented: “Hold my beer? I see Darth Vader.”
A second claimed: “Looks more like dark Vader using the force.”
Another quipped: “Darth Messi.”
After bagging his team’s first two goals, Messi helped tee up former non-league ace Robert Taylor on the stroke of half-time, before assisting the winger for another on 53 minutes.
Following the final whistle, Taylor gushed about his new team-mate: “He can do everything on the ball. He can keep it in tight spaces, and he makes the right decision 100 per cent of the time.
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“Most of the time he’ll find one of his team-mates. He brings so much quality to the team, so much. I mean, he’s the best player in the world.
“This is what he does – he scores two goals, he scored last game, gets another assist. It’s a dream come true to play with him.”
Messi is so far loving his time in MLSCredit: AFP
Beckham was all smiles as he watched Messi and Co in actionCredit: Reuters More