David Beckham’s dream of starting his own football club in the United States is finally realized on Sunday when Inter Miami plays its first game.
It took six years and Beckham admitted there had been “bumps in the road” as they struggled to find a venue for the stadium.
But the former England star has said he wants to create the best team in America – and even talked about one day recruiting players like Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
“I want to be able to create a legacy that my children can transform in 20 years and say, ‘My father built this club,'” said Beckham.
The team made their debut at Los Angeles FC and joined Major League Soccer with Nashville, while the league expanded to 26 teams.
“There have been times when I’ve watched and I thought it might not happen,” admitted Beckham.
“The biggest lesson is that I am more persistent than I thought and that I am more stubborn than my wife thinks.”
He added: “I am obviously not from Miami. I am from east London.
“So I was going to Miami, trying to buy land, talking to politicians, actually wouldn’t get us funny enough.”
Beckham’s star quality will guarantee the team’s attention and the 44-year-old is president of soccer operations and co-owner of Miami businessman Jorge Mas.
However, they struggled to get approval for a new stadium in Miami and will therefore initially be based 30 miles north of the largest city in Florida – in a new 18,000-seat stadium in Fort Lauderdale.
Beckham and Mr. Mas hope to quickly get the green light for a Miami stadium, which could be operational in a few years.
Inter Miami’s first home game will take place on March 14 against former Beckham club LA Galaxy.
David Beckham’s dream of starting his own football club in the United States is finally realized on Sunday when Inter Miami plays its first game.
It took six years and Beckham admitted there had been “bumps in the road” as they struggled to find a venue for the stadium.
But the former England star has said he wants to create the best team in America – and even talked about one day recruiting players like Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
“I want to be able to create a legacy that my children can transform in 20 years and say, ‘My father built this club,'” said Beckham.
The team made their debut at Los Angeles FC and joined Major League Soccer with Nashville, while the league expanded to 26 teams.
“There have been times when I’ve watched and I thought it might not happen,” admitted Beckham.
“The biggest lesson is that I am more persistent than I thought and that I am more stubborn than my wife thinks.”
He added: “I am obviously not from Miami. I am from east London.
“So I was going to Miami, trying to buy land, talking to politicians, actually wouldn’t get us funny enough.”
Beckham’s star quality will guarantee the team’s attention and the 44-year-old is president of soccer operations and co-owner of Miami businessman Jorge Mas.
However, they struggled to get approval for a new stadium in Miami and will therefore initially be based 30 miles north of the largest city in Florida – in a new 18,000-seat stadium in Fort Lauderdale.
Beckham and Mr. Mas hope to quickly get the green light for a Miami stadium, which could be operational in a few years.
Inter Miami’s first home game will take place on March 14 against former Beckham club LA Galaxy.