Expansion

Miami expansion bid hinges on downtown stadium, MLS Commissioner Don Garber tells ESPN

KickTV with David Beckham

It's been a while since we've had an update on the status of David Beckham's bid to bring an MLS expansion team to Miami. ESPN's Alexi Lalas filled the void during a report at halftime of Monday night's Seattle-LA Galaxy game.


He spoke to MLS Commissioner Don Garber, who made it abundantly clear what it's going to take for MLS to return to South Florida.


"Miami remains a top priority for us," Garber said, according to Lalas. "We remain focused on a downtown Miami location, and we will not expand to Miami unless we have a downtown site for the stadium."


On the same topic, Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Gimenez indicated over the weekend that there could be more clarity in the next month or two.


"I've spoken to the Beckham people," Gimenez told WPBT television in Miami. (Watch below, 10:30 mark.) "They are still looking at sites in Miami-Dade County, most of them private and some public. They said they'll come back in about 30-60 days and tell us what they would like and work out some kind of a plan.


"With all the hoopla with the World Cup that we had a couple of weeks ago, soccer is the sport of the future here, and I know we have a lot of new [Miami] residents that really are big soccer fans."