There are certainly a lot of exciting things cooking with Miami’s MLS expansion club with a team name coming “very soon” and, possibly, a star player from Croatia’s World Cup team coming down the pike as well.
Finalizing a stadium plan appears next on the docket, and per an extensive editorial board interview with the Miami Herald, Jorge Mas -- a partner in David Beckham-fronted ownership group -- said that he's planning to work directly with residents to gain their support. The expansion club's investors notably plan to cover the estimated $35 million cost of a contamination cleanup on the proposed site at Melreese Country Club, near Miami International Airport.
The group's billion-dollar vision includes an office park, hotel, retail complex and 250,00-seat soccer stadium on 73 acres.
They presented the plan last week before city commissioners, who delayed a decision until this Wednesday to put a measure on the November ballot to replace the city-owned Melreese Country Club and change the city’s charter to allow a no-bid deal to lease the 73 acres.
Miami was officially awarded an MLS expansion team in January of this year and is scheduled to begin play in 2020, at a temporary venue for one season before moving into a new stadium in 2021.
