When David Beckham turned his back on Europe in 2007 for a second career with Americaโs Major League Soccer (MLS), everyone thought heโd gone mad.
โThere were some players in the team that were pool cleaners or gardeners,โ the man himself recalled of LA Galaxy in Netflixโs Beckham docuseries.
โI actuallyโฆ I didnโt believe it.โ
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Beckhamโs own mother, Sandra West, added: โI actually went out with him for his first game. I did sit there and think, โWhat have you done?'โ
But it wasnโt just because the nascent competition, which had only been established a decade prior, was decidedly fourth-rate by any comparison.
Reports later revealed the key financial dimensions of the English football iconโs contract with LA Galaxy had been greatly exaggerated by his own PR team.
$32.5 million over five years (or $6.5 million per year) was his actual baseline salary as opposed to the $250 million sum initially plastered across headlines; the latter had been inflated by potential outside revenue streams. Ostensibly, Becks was copping a hefty 70% pay cut.
Of course, the upfront compensation wasnโt the only detail outlined within his LA Galaxy contract. As we now know, there were hundreds of millions โ potentially a whole billion โ of untapped value at stake.
Aside from the aforementioned baseline salary, which the MLS instituted the โDesignated Player Ruleโ (AKA the โDavid Beckham Ruleโ) just to pony up, similar to what Inter Miami would eventually plate up to entice Lionel Messi (more on this later), David Beckham was guaranteed an undisclosed percentage of all LA Galaxy revenue to bridge the gap. Tickets, merchandise, sponsorships, the whole shebang.
According to sports-business expert Joe Pompliano, effectively, the revised earnings during his brief-yet-impactful tenure in Los Angeles translated to the followingโฆ
- Five-Year Salary: $32.5 million
- Revenue Share: $18 million
- Sponsorships & Endorsements: $204.5 million
Total: $255 million
โDavid Beckham averaged over $50 million of income per season in MLS โ a 155% increase from the money he made at Real Madrid.โ
โAnd in total, Beckham made an astounding $800 million by the time he retired from professional soccer in 2013,โ explains Pompliano.
But that wasnโt all.
In an unprecedented move, Beckhamโs LA Galaxy contract included a unique provision that entailed the option to acquire an MLS expansion franchise in any market except New York City at an extremely reasonable fixed price of $25 million once he was done playing for the league.
Back then, $25 million was a figure that worked in the MLSโs favour considering Toronto FC had only just joined for $10 million. Over time, however, the David Beckham Effect would elevate this previously neglected facet of football; to the point where the $25 million expansion fee is now a relative bargain when compared to the $500 million Egyptian billionaire Mohamed Mansour will fork out for his newly-proposed San Diego team.
Pompliano continues: โA $500 million expansion fee instantly makes San Diegoโs MLS team more valuable than Premier League clubs like Newcastle United ($440 million), Leeds United ($380 million), Aston Villa ($370 million), and Crystal Palace ($335 million) โ despite San Diego not having its own stadium or ever playing a competitive match.
โSan Diegoโs $500 million expansion fee is 2.5X more than the $200 million fee St. Louis City SC paid last year, 5X more than the $100 million fee New York City FC paid in 2015, and 50X more than the $10 million fee Toronto FC paid in 2007.โ
In 2018, five years after David Beckham punctuated an illustrious playing career with a single season at Paris Saint-Germain (and a little longer since heโd collected two MLS Cups), the Miami Beckham United group was awarded the 25th MLS franchise: Club Internacional de Fรบtbol Miami or Inter Miami CF.
By the time Inter Miami debuted with their first game in March 2020, the club was already the 10th most valuable MLS franchise and valued at approximately $580 million โ close to 24 times the original $25 million expansion fee. And they hadnโt even begun to hit the stratosphere yet.
As you will have definitely heard by now, with the conclusion of his own Paris St-Germain contract, Lionel Messi officially declared for David Beckhamโs Inter Miami โ turning down an insanely lucrative offer from Saudi Arabiaโs Al-Hilal as well as the opportunity for a homecoming return to Barcelona FC in the process.
The MLS sideโs โlayered offerโ to footballโs reigning GOAT is reportedly comprised of the followingโฆ
- a roster spot immune to the limits of MLS salary regulations (exact figures TBA)
- an ownership stake in Inter Miami once he retires from the field (exact percentage TBA)
- revenue-sharing agreements with both Adidas and Apple (MLS Season Pass profits)
Sounds familiar, no?
And if you thought the David Beckham Effect was impressive, wait until you get a load of what Messiโs arrival to the Land of the Free/Home of the Brave has already done for Inter Miamiโs profile. Aside from winning what was once a bottom-tier sideโs maiden trophy with the 2023 Leagues Cup and punching their ticket to the US Open Cup finals within weeks of lacing up.
As per Bleacher Report, the cheapest ticket for Inter Miamiโs July 21st match before the Argentinian talent announced his blockbuster move was just $29. The cheapest ticket for the same match immediately after? $467 (with some selling for as much as $20,000 on the grey market).
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In a country where NBA basketball, NFL football, and of course, MLB baseball arenโt just the dominant sports but practically religions, Inter Miami is now one of the most-followed American sports teams on Instagram at around 15.4 million โ trailing behind the Golden State Warriors (30.6 million), Los Angeles Lakers (22.8 million), Cleveland Cavaliers (15.7 million); while dwarfing every NFL franchise and surpassing Italyโs Inter Milan.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, Inter Miamiโs total valuation is steadily cruising towards the $1 billion benchmark.
โItโs a gamble to try become the Messiah of American soccer. He was risking everything by coming here,โ noted Franklin Foer, author of How Soccer Explains The World.
โI didnโt want to sit stillโฆ I want to win with the best players and the best team.โ
David Beckham, Netflixโs โBeckhamโ
**Note: All $$$ = USD (not adjusted for inflation)
