simon evans

MIAMI (Reuters) – LeBron James scored the game-winning points in the dying embers of overtime as the Miami Heat held off a determined Indiana Pacers 103-102 in a thrilling Eastern Conference Finals opener on Wednesday.

If broadcasters were concerned that another easy series win for Miami would further damage ratings for the playoffs, they got the perfect antidote with the Pacers pushing Miami all the way and raising the prospect of a tight best-of-seven set.

Indiana’s Paul George, whose turnover looked to have given Miami the win in regulation, made amends in spectacular style by sinking a huge three-pointer with just 0.7 seconds left on the clock to force overtime.

Then, with Miami two points ahead and 2.2 seconds on the clock of the first extra period, George was fouled by Dwyane Wade as he attempted a three-point shot and kept his cool to sink all three free throws to put Indiana ahead by a point.

With Miami’s last throw of the dice, Shane Battier passed to James, who drove the lane on his way to a comfortable lay-up that fell a fraction ahead of the buzzer and sent the Heat crowd into a frenzy.

James top-scored for Miami with 30 points on 12-of-24 shooting with 10 rebounds and 10 assists as he completed his ninth post-season triple-double, while George had 27 points for the Pacers with David West contributing 26.

Game Two is in Miami on Friday while over in the Western Conference, the San Antonio Spurs lead the Memphis Grizzlies 2-0 ahead of Game Three on Saturday. (Editing by John O’Brien)

By Simon Evans

(Reuters) – Former Manchester City and United States international midfielder Claudio Reyna was named as the first director of football for new Major League Soccer (MLS) team New York City Football Club, the team said on Wednesday.

The new club, which will start playing in 2015, is jointly owned by Premier League club City and baseball’s New York Yankees.

The 39-year-old Reyna, who hails from New Jersey, played 111 times for the U.S. national team and featured for Manchester City from 2003 to 2007.

“Our commitment is to build a team that will win and will play good football that all New Yorkers can be proud of,” said Manchester City chief executive Ferran Soriano.

“We needed someone to lead this in New York, a director of football, the most important employee.

“He is a New Yorker, understands New York football very well. He not only played in Europe but played for Manchester City and we are very proud to announce Claudio Reyna is our Director of Football,” added Soriano.

Reyna, who is the new club’s first employee, said the role was tailor-made for him and that he was thrilled to receive the opportunity.

“I think it is very clear that New York City deserves a team, needs a team and we aim to honor that in the highest way possible,” he said.

Reyna had been working as U.S. Soccer Youth’s technical director and stood down from that position on Wednesday to take up his role with the new franchise.

“Claudio helped modernize the approach to youth player development in this country and put us on a path to success,” said U.S. Soccer President Sunil Gulati.

“We appreciate all his hard work and dedication. We certainly understand this is a unique opportunity for Claudio and his family, and wish him continued success.”

(Editing by Clare Fallon)

May 22 (Reuters) – Former Manchester City and United States international midfielder Claudio Reyna was named as the first director of football for new Major League Soccer (MLS) team New York City Football Club, the team said on Wednesday.

The new club, which will start playing in 2015, is jointly owned by Premier League club City and baseball’s New York Yankees.

The 39-year-old Reyna, who hails from New Jersey, played 111 times for the U.S. national team and featured for Manchester City from 2003 to 2007.

“Our commitment is to build a team that will win and will play good football that all New Yorkers can be proud of,” said Manchester City chief executive Ferran Soriano.

“We needed someone to lead this in New York, a director of football, the most important employee.

“He is a New Yorker, understands New York football very well. He not only played in Europe but played for Manchester City and we are very proud to announce Claudio Reyna is our Director of Football,” added Soriano.

Reyna, who is the new club’s first employee, said the role was tailor-made for him and that he was thrilled to receive the opportunity.

“I think it is very clear that New York City deserves a team, needs a team and we aim to honour that in the highest way possible,” he said.

Reyna had been working as U.S. Soccer Youth’s technical director and stood down from that position on Wednesday to take up his role with the new franchise.

“Claudio helped modernize the approach to youth player development in this country and put us on a path to success,” said U.S. Soccer President Sunil Gulati.

“We appreciate all his hard work and dedication. We certainly understand this is a unique opportunity for Claudio and his family, and wish him continued success.” (Editing by Clare Fallon)

MIAMI (Reuters) – For a brief but dazzling spell in the 1970s, New Yorkers fell in love with soccer as Pele and the Cosmos showcased the world’s most popular game in a city long dominated by baseball and American football.

Now Major League Soccer hopes that a new team, called the New York City Football Club and formed by an alliance of English Premier League club Manchester City and baseball’s grandest club the New York Yankees, can not only recapture that excitement but this time, sustain it.

“This is a transformational development that will elevate the league to new heights in this country,” said an upbeat MLS commissioner Don Garber on Tuesday.

Making it work, though, will require not only smart marketing and good players but, in today’s sporting landscape, also the right stadium in the right place and an ability to convince the city’s sports fans that MLS truly is major league.

Across in New Jersey, the New York Red Bulls, while no flop, have found it hard to attract New Yorkers to take the trip across the Hudson river in big numbers to watch MLS and the new club hopes being inside the five boroughs of the city itself will produce better attendance and interest.

While the Cosmos, with the likes of German Franz Beckenbauer and Italian Giorgio Chinaglia, grabbed plenty of attention, they did so in the now defunct North American Soccer League, which quickly collapsed in debt as clubs spent beyond their means on wages for foreign stars.

MLS has been at pains to ensure that history does not repeat itself. Their ‘single entity’ structure with a tight salary cap, just $2.95 million per team, not only creates a parity so that smaller clubs can compete but also acts as a brake on salary inflation.

That has brought stability and allowed clubs to invest in new soccer-specific stadiums and academies but it has had the drawback of limiting the ability of clubs to compete in the global labor market for talent – something that might hamper the new club.

UNPRECEDENTED MILLIONS

While MLS clubs are allowed to sign three ‘designated players’ largely from outside the salary cap, allowing the likes of David Beckham and Thierry Henry to move to the league, the average annual salary in the league is close to a modest $150,000 according to the MLS Players Union.

Sheikh Mansour, the billionaire from Abu Dhabi who owns Manchester City, has spent unprecedented millions on players since taking over the club in 2008 but his staff will find a very different ‘transfer market’ operates in MLS.

“Regarding the salary cap, we know very well the rules of the MLS and we think we can build a winning team within these rules,” said Manchester City chief executive Ferran Soriano.

“We’re going to make extensive use of our expertise, our knowledge, our people. We have very high-calibre people in Manchester City that have been very successful building winning teams”.

While the link with City will undoubtedly allow access to a network of scouts and coaches to help the new club, the close association with one particular Premier League club could create some marketing problems.

Premier League clubs, including City’s rivals Manchester United, have developed significant fan bases in the United States, including New York, and while they would appear to be a natural core support for the new club, it will be a key task to persuade them they are not supporting an inferior replica of the English team.

Former U.S. international Alexi Lalas, who was general manager of the Red Bulls’ predecessors the New York-New Jersey MetroStars, believes the new team will be a success but is concerned about the link with the English club being too pronounced.

“I do question limiting your market and your customers and having to live up to the ‘mothership’ within a league with a salary cap,” Lalas told Reuters.

“When the compare and contrast with Manchester City occurs, as it inevitably will, they are going to have to say that they are just as good. That is a difficult proposition but that is potentially what they are creating,” he added.

TOUGH CHALLENGE

Finding a location to build a modern stadium will also be a tough challenge – MLS has been working on a possible site in Flushing Meadows but the new franchise owners now say they want to evaluate all their options.

While Americans generally may be more convinced of soccer’s charms now than ever before, it will still be a battle for the new club to find space in a crowded sports and entertainment market.

The New York metropolitan area has two NFL teams, two Major League Baseball teams, two NBA teams and two NHL teams and while the involvement of the most famous of all those franchises – the Yankees – can only help, the new club faces a crowded market.

“It is not just completion with sports teams, it is competition for the entertainment dollar, there is so much stuff to do in New York,” said Lalas, who also says the team will have to live up to the growing sophistication of a soccer public that is familiar with watching European and South American soccer.

“It is a sport that is constantly comparing and contrasting with what happens overseas, it is smart, educated type of soccer audience in New York, they are discerning and they are going to smell if it is authentic right away. Creating that relevancy is the biggest challenge”.

(Editing by John Mehaffey)

MIAMI (Reuters) – For a brief but dazzling spell in the 1970s, New Yorkers fell in love with soccer as Pele and the Cosmos showcased the world’s most popular game in a city long dominated by baseball and American football.

Now Major League Soccer hopes that a new team, called the New York City Football Club and formed by an alliance of English Premier League club Manchester City and baseball’s grandest club the New York Yankees, can not only recapture that excitement but this time, sustain it.

“This is a transformational development that will elevate the league to new heights in this country,” said an upbeat MLS commissioner Don Garber on Tuesday.

Making it work, though, will require not only smart marketing and good players but, in today’s sporting landscape, also the right stadium in the right place and an ability to convince the city’s sports fans that MLS truly is major league.

Across in New Jersey, the New York Red Bulls, while no flop, have found it hard to attract New Yorkers to take the trip across the Hudson river in big numbers to watch MLS and the new club hopes being inside the five boroughs of the city itself will produce better attendance and interest.

While the Cosmos, with the likes of German Franz Beckenbauer and Italian Giorgio Chinaglia, grabbed plenty of attention, they did so in the now defunct North American Soccer League, which quickly collapsed in debt as clubs spent beyond their means on wages for foreign stars.

MLS has been at pains to ensure that history does not repeat itself. Their ‘single entity’ structure with a tight salary cap, just $2.95 million per team, not only creates a parity so that smaller clubs can compete but also acts as a brake on salary inflation.

That has brought stability and allowed clubs to invest in new soccer-specific stadiums and academies but it has had the drawback of limiting the ability of clubs to compete in the global labour market for talent – something that might hamper the new club.

UNPRECEDENTED MILLIONS

While MLS clubs are allowed to sign three ‘designated players’ largely from outside the salary cap, allowing the likes of David Beckham and Thierry Henry to move to the league, the average annual salary in the league is close to a modest $150,000 according to the MLS Players Union.

Sheikh Mansour, the billionaire from Abu Dhabi who owns Manchester City, has spent unprecedented millions on players since taking over the club in 2008 but his staff will find a very different ‘transfer market’ operates in MLS.

“Regarding the salary cap, we know very well the rules of the MLS and we think we can build a winning team within these rules,” said Manchester City chief executive Ferran Soriano.

“We’re going to make extensive use of our expertise, our knowledge, our people. We have very high-calibre people in Manchester City that have been very successful building winning teams”.

While the link with City will undoubtedly allow access to a network of scouts and coaches to help the new club, the close association with one particular Premier League club could create some marketing problems.

Premier League clubs, including City’s rivals Manchester United, have developed significant fan bases in the United States, including New York, and while they would appear to be a natural core support for the new club, it will be a key task to persuade them they are not supporting an inferior replica of the English team.

Former U.S. international Alexi Lalas, who was general manager of the Red Bulls’ predecessors the New York-New Jersey MetroStars, believes the new team will be a success but is concerned about the link with the English club being too pronounced.

“I do question limiting your market and your customers and having to live up to the ‘mothership’ within a league with a salary cap,” Lalas told Reuters.

“When the compare and contrast with Manchester City occurs, as it inevitably will, they are going to have to say that they are just as good. That is a difficult proposition but that is potentially what they are creating,” he added.

TOUGH CHALLENGE

Finding a location to build a modern stadium will also be a tough challenge – MLS has been working on a possible site in Flushing Meadows but the new franchise owners now say they want to evaluate all their options.

While Americans generally may be more convinced of soccer’s charms now than ever before, it will still be a battle for the new club to find space in a crowded sports and entertainment market.

The New York metropolitan area has two NFL teams, two Major League Baseball teams, two NBA teams and two NHL teams and while the involvement of the most famous of all those franchises – the Yankees – can only help, the new club faces a crowded market.

“It is not just completion with sports teams, it is competition for the entertainment dollar, there is so much stuff to do in New York,” said Lalas, who also says the team will have to live up to the growing sophistication of a soccer public that is familiar with watching European and South American soccer.

“It is a sport that is constantly comparing and contrasting with what happens overseas, it is smart, educated type of soccer audience in New York, they are discerning and they are going to smell if it is authentic right away. Creating that relevancy is the biggest challenge”.

(Editing by John Mehaffey)

MIAMI, May 21 (Reuters) – For a brief but dazzling spell in the 1970s, New Yorkers fell in love with soccer as Pele and the Cosmos showcased the world’s most popular game in a city long dominated by baseball and American football.

Now Major League Soccer hopes that a new team, called the New York City Football Club and formed by an alliance of English Premier League club Manchester City and baseball’s grandest club the New York Yankees, can not only recapture that excitement but this time, sustain it.

“This is a transformational development that will elevate the league to new heights in this country,” said an upbeat MLS commissioner Don Garber on Tuesday.

Making it work, though, will require not only smart marketing and good players but, in today’s sporting landscape, also the right stadium in the right place and an ability to convince the city’s sports fans that MLS truly is major league.

Across in New Jersey, the New York Red Bulls, while no flop, have found it hard to attract New Yorkers to take the trip across the Hudson river in big numbers to watch MLS and the new club hopes being inside the five boroughs of the city itself will produce better attendance and interest.

While the Cosmos, with the likes of German Franz Beckenbauer and Italian Giorgio Chinaglia, grabbed plenty of attention, they did so in the now defunct North American Soccer League, which quickly collapsed in debt as clubs spent beyond their means on wages for foreign stars.

MLS has been at pains to ensure that history does not repeat itself. Their ‘single entity’ structure with a tight salary cap, just $2.95 million per team, not only creates a parity so that smaller clubs can compete but also acts as a brake on salary inflation.

That has brought stability and allowed clubs to invest in new soccer-specific stadiums and academies but it has had the drawback of limiting the ability of clubs to compete in the global labour market for talent – something that might hamper the new club.

UNPRECEDENTED MILLIONS

While MLS clubs are allowed to sign three ‘designated players’ largely from outside the salary cap, allowing the likes of David Beckham and Thierry Henry to move to the league, the average annual salary in the league is close to a modest $150,000 according to the MLS Players Union.

Sheikh Mansour, the billionaire from Abu Dhabi who owns Manchester City, has spent unprecedented millions on players since taking over the club in 2008 but his staff will find a very different ‘transfer market’ operates in MLS.

“Regarding the salary cap, we know very well the rules of the MLS and we think we can build a winning team within these rules,” said Manchester City chief executive Ferran Soriano.

“We’re going to make extensive use of our expertise, our knowledge, our people. We have very high-calibre people in Manchester City that have been very successful building winning teams”.

While the link with City will undoubtedly allow access to a network of scouts and coaches to help the new club, the close association with one particular Premier League club could create some marketing problems.

Premier League clubs, including City’s rivals Manchester United, have developed significant fan bases in the United States, including New York, and while they would appear to be a natural core support for the new club, it will be a key task to persuade them they are not supporting an inferior replica of the English team.

Former U.S. international Alexi Lalas, who was general manager of the Red Bulls’ predecessors the New York-New Jersey MetroStars, believes the new team will be a success but is concerned about the link with the English club being too pronounced.

“I do question limiting your market and your customers and having to live up to the ‘mothership’ within a league with a salary cap,” Lalas told Reuters.

“When the compare and contrast with Manchester City occurs, as it inevitably will, they are going to have to say that they are just as good. That is a difficult proposition but that is potentially what they are creating,” he added.

TOUGH CHALLENGE

Finding a location to build a modern stadium will also be a tough challenge – MLS has been working on a possible site in Flushing Meadows but the new franchise owners now say they want to evaluate all their options.

While Americans generally may be more convinced of soccer’s charms now than ever before, it will still be a battle for the new club to find space in a crowded sports and entertainment market.

The New York metropolitan area has two NFL teams, two Major League Baseball teams, two NBA teams and two NHL teams and while the involvement of the most famous of all those franchises – the Yankees – can only help, the new club faces a crowded market.

“It is not just completion with sports teams, it is competition for the entertainment dollar, there is so much stuff to do in New York,” said Lalas, who also says the team will have to live up to the growing sophistication of a soccer public that is familiar with watching European and South American soccer.

“It is a sport that is constantly comparing and contrasting with what happens overseas, it is smart, educated type of soccer audience in New York, they are discerning and they are going to smell if it is authentic right away. Creating that relevancy is the biggest challenge”. (Editing by John Mehaffey)

MIAMI (Reuters) – Manchester City and the New York Yankees have formed a new Major League Soccer team to play in New York City from 2015, the organizations said on Tuesday.

English Premier League club Manchester City, owned by Sheikh Mansour of Abu Dhabi, will be the majority partner in New York City Football Club with the Yankees, the biggest name in baseball, an “active member of the ownership group”.

“This is another big day for soccer in America,” MLS commissioner Don Garber told Reuters.

“We have worked for quite some time on trying to finalize a deal to bring the 20th MLS team to New York City. Two of the biggest, most prestigious and clearly most respected sports organizations in the world are joining together to own this team,” he added.

The ‘franchise fee’ for the new club is around $100 million.

The new club will face a local rival in the New York Red Bulls who play in Harrison, New Jersey and are owned by Austrian energy drink firm Red Bull.

Garber said MLS viewed a new top-flight team in New York City itself as a “transformational” moment for the league.

“This is a big market and represents over 19 million people,” he said.

“I think it will be transformational for MLS and for soccer in America. This country is rapidly becoming a very powerful and passionate soccer nation and it is our view that bringing together these two organizations will allow us to continue that tremendous momentum and bring it arguably to the most important city in the entire world,” he added.

“VERY, VERY RECENTLY”

Manchester City, who won the Premier League in the 2011/12 season, hope that the Yankees will allow them to tap into expertise in reaching sports fans in New York.

“This is the best of both worlds – we believe we know how to manage a soccer club and the Yankees are a top sports organization in the world and are true New Yorkers,” Manchester City chief executive Ferran Soriano told Reuters.

“We have a long term plan for soccer in New York and there couldn’t be a better partner,” he said.

While City have been working on the details of an MLS franchise for nine months, Yankees president Randy Levine said his organization only joined the process “very, very recently”.

“We are really excited. George Steinbrenner, the boss, and the Steinbrenner family, (owners) Hal and Hank Steinbrenner, have long been soccer fans,” Levine told Reuters.

“This is a phenomenal opportunity for us, in our home market, to partner with Manchester City, one of the great organizations in the world,” he added.

The new team will play at a temporary home in 2015 while efforts to find and build a new stadium are completed.

MLS has already begun discussions with the City of New York about the possibility of constructing a new stadium in Flushing Meadows Corona Park in Queens but other options will also now be looked at.

“I don’t think there have been any setbacks (with Flushing Meadows) and I think clearly that is an option,” said Levine.

“We just got into this and we are going to sit down with our partners and the commissioner and get the lay of the land and review and see what is the best alternative. This is just to see what are the best available options,” he added.

As well as the Red Bulls in New Jersey, the other professional team in the New York area is the re-formed New York Cosmos who will join the second tier North American Soccer League later this year.

Retired former England midfielder David Beckham, who played for Los Angeles Galaxy, is in talks with MLS regarding an option he has to create a new MLS team but his deal with the league explicitly ruled out New York City as a possible location for such an ‘expansion franchise’.

(Editing by Mark Meadows)

MIAMI, May 21 (Reuters) – Manchester City and the New York Yankees have formed a new Major League Soccer team to play in New York City from 2015, the organizations said on Tuesday.

English Premier League club Manchester City, owned by Sheikh Mansour of Abu Dhabi, will be the majority partner in New York City Football Club with the Yankees, the biggest name in baseball, an “active member of the ownership group”.

“This is another big day for soccer in America,” MLS commissioner Don Garber told Reuters.

“We have worked for quite some time on trying to finalise a deal to bring the 20th MLS team to New York City. Two of the biggest, most prestigious and clearly most respected sports organizations in the world are joining together to own this team,” he added.

The ‘franchise fee’ for the new club is around $100 million.

The new club will face a local rival in the New York Red Bulls who play in Harrison, New Jersey and are owned by Austrian energy drink firm Red Bull.

Garber said MLS viewed a new top-flight team in New York City itself as a “transformational” moment for the league.

“This is a big market and represents over 19 million people,” he said.

“I think it will be transformational for MLS and for soccer in America. This country is rapidly becoming a very powerful and passionate soccer nation and it is our view that bringing together these two organizations will allow us to continue that tremendous momentum and bring it arguably to the most important city in the entire world,” he added.

“VERY, VERY RECENTLY”

Manchester City, who won the Premier League in the 2011/12 season, hope that the Yankees will allow them to tap into expertise in reaching sports fans in New York.

“This is the best of both worlds – we believe we know how to manage a soccer club and the Yankees are a top sports organization in the world and are true New Yorkers,” Manchester City chief executive Ferran Soriano told Reuters.

“We have a long term plan for soccer in New York and there couldn’t be a better partner,” he said.

While City have been working on the details of an MLS franchise for nine months, Yankees president Randy Levine said his organization only joined the process “very, very recently”.

“We are really excited. George Steinbrenner, the boss, and the Steinbrenner family, (owners) Hal and Hank Steinbrenner, have long been soccer fans,” Levine told Reuters.

“This is a phenomenal opportunity for us, in our home market, to partner with Manchester City, one of the great organizations in the world,” he added.

The new team will play at a temporary home in 2015 while efforts to find and build a new stadium are completed.

MLS has already begun discussions with the City of New York about the possibility of constructing a new stadium in Flushing Meadows Corona Park in Queens but other options will also now be looked at.

“I don’t think there have been any setbacks (with Flushing Meadows) and I think clearly that is an option,” said Levine.

“We just got into this and we are going to sit down with our partners and the commissioner and get the lay of the land and review and see what is the best alternative. This is just to see what are the best available options,” he added.

As well as the Red Bulls in New Jersey, the other professional team in the New York area is the re-formed New York Cosmos who will join the second tier North American Soccer League later this year.

Retired former England midfielder David Beckham, who played for Los Angeles Galaxy, is in talks with MLS regarding an option he has to create a new MLS team but his deal with the league explicitly ruled out New York City as a possible location for such an ‘expansion franchise’. (Editing by Mark Meadows)

MIAMI (Reuters) – San Francisco is favored to be named the host city for the 50th Super Bowl when National Football League (NFL) owners vote Tuesday on the site of the 2016 championship game.

The Californian city, home to the NFL’s 49ers, is up against South Florida (Miami) while Houston will compete with the losing bid for the 2017 game, which will also be decided on Tuesday.

All the focus, however, is on the prestige of hosting the 50th anniversary game, which the NFL is promising to make the biggest and best finale ever.

The San Francisco Bay Area has hosted one Super Bowl, in 1985, while the Miami area has enjoyed the economic boost from hosting the NFL’s championship game a record-tying 10 times, most recently in 2010.

But that extra experience appears to be the only obvious advantage Miami has.

The NFL has said for several years that they wanted to see upgrades made to the 26-year-old Miami Gardens venue but a bid by Dolphins owner Stephen Ross to get state funding for a major redevelopment failed and the billionaire has made it clear he will not fund the changes alone.

That setback has left the South Florida bid committee talking about a ‘Plan B’ with the existing stadium but they have been badly damaged by the dropping of the planned upgrade.

“Following the Miami Dolphins’ failure to secure public funding for renovations … San Francisco sits in the driver’s seat,” Albert Breer wrote on the NFL website on Monday.

While the South Florida bid is now left to focus on downtown events and beachside activities, San Francisco, in contrast, is proudly highlighting the state-of-the-art nature of their $1.2 billion stadium in Santa Clara set to open next year.

The San Francisco bid, which was presented to the NFL’s 32 owners on shiny, new iPads, and which has been backed by some of the biggest names in Silicon Valley, such as Apple and Google, promises an unmatched venue.

As well as ultra-luxury suits, Levi’s Stadium will feature stadium-wide wifi, streaming video, mobile connectivity, in-seat tablet holders and huge HD video boards measuring over 13,000 square feet.

“I think we will win on our own right,” Steve Van Dorn, chief executive of the Santa Clara Chamber of Commerce, told the Silicon Valley Mercury News, “I’m feeling very good about it.”

If that confidence proves well-placed, Miami would be left to fight Houston for the 2017 game with the Texas city viewed as favorite in that contest.

Houston’s indoor Reliant Stadium hosted the Super Bowl in 2004 and is considered superior to Miami’s ageing arena and the setback in getting Florida funds for the stadium was seen as a major boost for Houston.

“Certainly what happened doesn’t help Miami’s bid. There’s no doubt about that,” Houston Texans owner Bob McNair said. “But that doesn’t say that the owners couldn’t decide to still go to Miami.”

South Florida will hope that being better provided for the week-long build up of events and parties could yet swing a big game their way.

“We’re extremely optimistic that our bid is going to set a new level and they’re going to have a tough decision to make,” Miami bid chairman Rodney Barreto said recently.

“We’ve put some new things on the table that are really exciting and are exciting for the South Florida area.”

Next year’s Super Bowl will be played in East Rutherford, New Jersey, at the shared home of the New York Giants and New York Jets while the 2015 game will be played in Glendale, Arizona, at the home of the Arizona Cardinals.

(Editing by Frank Pingue)

MIAMI (Reuters) – David Beckham could return to the United States as owner of a new club and his advisors have already held talks with Major League Soccer.

Beckham announced his retirement from professional soccer on Thursday but has been tight-lipped about his future plans after ending the season with French club Paris St Germain.

The former England captain’s contract with MLS, signed when he joined the L.A. Galaxy in 2007, included an option to purchase an ‘expansion franchise’.

Beckham’s advisors, which include his management team, Simon Fuller’s XIX Entertainment, have discussed with the league some of the possible locations for an eventual team.

“There have been discussions with his advisors, his management, preliminary discussions,” Major League Soccer executive vice-president of communications, Dan Courtemanche told Reuters on Friday.

MLS currently has 19 teams and hopes to add a 20th club in New York City, with Manchester City owner Sheikh Mansour of Abu Dhabi reported to be the likely buyer of that franchise.

Beckham’s option, which would allow him to create a new franchise for a fee understood to be $25 million, well below the recent entry fees to the league for other expansion clubs, explicitly rules out New York City as a location for an eventual new team.

While Beckham has always indicated he would use the option, a spokesman for Beckham told Reuters that it was “early days” regarding any post-retirement plans for the player.

Beckham has, however, already taken on some commitments including signing up for ‘ambassadorial’ roles promoting football in China and encouraging people to play sports in a partnership with British pay TV company BSkyB.

When the contractual opportunity to own an MLS team was first disclosed, in 2009, Beckham said: “It will happen eventually.” Last year he stated: “I have the option of owning a franchise, and that excites me.”

But where that team could be based is a tricky question that is occupying the minds of the Londoner’s advisors.

The South East of the United States is currently without an MLS team and Miami has been considered as one of the possible locations by Beckham’s team.

“It is one of many markets that has been mentioned, so have other markets,” said Courtemanche.

While the South Beach lifestyle might appeal to Beckham, who made his family home in Beverley Hills during his six years in Los Angeles, the city has been considered a tough market to crack for MLS.

The Miami Fusion, who played in neighboring Fort Lauderdale, joined MLS in 1998 but were closed down by the then struggling league after four seasons along with fellow Florida team the Tampa Bay Mutiny.

A major stumbling block to a South Florida team is that they would likely have to finance a purpose-built soccer stadium given the two major venues in the city are an NFL and baseball venue and MLS is not keen on sharing sites designed for other sports.

MLS commissioner Don Garber has frequently mentioned a desire to return to the South East though and there have been talks with ambitious lower division club Orlando City and with the owners of the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons.

Other cities that are considered potential expansion sites for MLS include Minneapolis, Tampa and San Antonio.

While MLS is currently focused on completing the deal for the New York City franchise and stadium plans, with an announcement possible later this month, the talks with Beckham’s camp are expected to continue.

“At some point in time he will exercise that option and we can go through the process of making sure it is the perfect fit for David and Major League Soccer but we are not there yet,” said Courtemanche.

(Reporting By Simon Evans; editing by Toby Davis)