In the United States, if there is a trend It’s a rare opportunity to be part of this phenomenon and apparently that’s what happened in MLS after the arrival of the Argentine star, Lionel Messi. But there are other reasons that attract celebrities to this league.
The world champion fills each of the stadiums where he plays with Inter Miami and in most of them there are always figures from the world of entertainment, in addition to other iconic sports figures from that country such as LeBron James and Magic Johnson, among others.
The Oscar winner, Leonardo DiCaprio, went to see Messi, as well as the actors who played Spider-Man, Toby McGuire and Tom Holland. The royalty represented by Prince Harry, and other representative names from the entertainment industry such as Selena Gómez, Will Ferell, Liam Gallagher, James Harden, King Bach, Clayton Kershaw, and others, are also present.
All of them saw Messi in action before he traveled to meet his team for the start of the Qualifiers, but beyond showbiz and where everyone wants, for these celebrities MLS has become the center of investment.
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One of the pioneers is David Beckham, who ended his playing career with the LA Galaxy, but on the condition that he could participate in the expansion of the MLS for about US$25 million. Beckham is one of the main investors in Messi’s team and one of the most influential players to decide to continue his career in that country.
And many stars have seen how Beckham has contributed financially to the league and received excellent dividends. Your investment of US$25 million is now valued at US$600 million. Beckham formally entered the MLS business, as an investor in Miami, in 2014.
This situation has led other celebrities to venture into the sports business, such as the Oscar winner, Matthew McConaughey, who is a shareholder of the Texas team Austin FC, which entered the league in 2021. The comedian took the same path as Drew Carey, who is one of the owners of the Seattle Sounders FC team.
Several NBA stars are also in that vein. James Harden has a very special bond with the city of Houston and at the beginning of 2019 he joined it as a minority shareholder of the Houston Dynamo; Kevin Durant joined this list after becoming one of the shareholders of the Philadelphia Union; Steve Nash supported team owner Robert Saver in forming the Vancouver Whitecaps in 2008; while Magic Johnson, as the leader of Magic Johnson Enterprises, is one of the members of the Los Angeles FC ownership group since 2016.
MLS has 29 teams and will reach 30 in 2025, when the San Diego franchise joins. Currently, the league has an estimate of around US$2,000 million and is one of the businesses with the greatest growth projections in the short and medium term. So this season is not only about fashion, but also about money.
