By FRANCO PANIZO
David Beckham seemingly cannot get enough of Miami.
According to a report from the Miami Herald, Beckham is back in Miami and will scout stadium sites for his potential MLS expansion club with Bolivian billionaire Marcelo Claure on Wednesday.
Beckham and his long-time associate Simon Fuller were in town having dinner at the South Florida home of Claure on Tuesday night, something which Claure confirmed via his personal social network accounts. Another attendee reportedly at the dinner was Miami-Dade mayor Carlos Gimenez.
Several reports over the past year have linked Beckham with using his discounted expansion fee, worth a reported $25 million, on a team in Miami. Beckham and MLS have yet to make an official announcement, but it seems like a foregone conclusion at this point, especially with Beckham reportedly eyeing 2016 as the start date for his franchise.
Beckham was in Miami earlier this year with Claure touring stadiums that could potentially house an MLS team. Reports have said that MLS is not into the idea of a Miami team beginning play at either FIU Stadium or Sun Life Stadium.
Recent stories have mentioned the possibility of Beckham’s club beginning play at Marlins Park, the snazzy new home of MLB’s Miami Marlins, before constructing a soccer-specific stadium.
If Miami is granted an expansion team, it would surely serve as a rival to Orlando City. The USL PRO club is expected to be announced as an MLS expansion club in the coming weeks.
Miami and Florida have been without an MLS team since the league decided to get rid of the Fusion and Tampa Bay Mutiny back in 2001.
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What do you think of Beckham being back in Miami with Claure? Not opposed to the idea of a potential Miami franchise beginning to play at Marlins Park before a soccer-specific stadium is built? Think we will hear an expansion announcement from Beckham soon?
Share your thoughts below.