David Beckham Returns to Miami, Will Tour Sites for Potential Major League Soccer Expansion Team: Report

David Beckham was back in Miami Tuesday night, having dinner at the home of a billionaire who is a potential partner for the Major League Soccer team he intends to bring to the Magic City, the Miami Herald reported.

The recently retired English soccer icon – who reportedly intends to start an MLS expansion team in Miami for the discounted rate of $25 million – was a dinner guest of Marcelo Claure, the president and CEO of Brightstar Corp., the newspaper reported.

Suzy Trutie, the assistant director of communications for Miami-Dade County, said in an email that Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez was having dinner with Claure.

“David Beckham is also invited to the dinner, but his attendance has not been confirmed,” she said.

A source with knowledge of the MLS-to-Miami talks told the Herald that Beckham was having dinner at Claure’s home, however.

A woman who answered the phone at the Los Angeles office of Beckham’s management agency, XIX Entertainment, had no comment.

The Herald reported that Beckham and Claure will visit possible stadium sites for their would-be franchise Wednesday.

Trutie said Gimenez would not be on the scouting outing due to previous commitments.

Beckham isn’t the only soccer hotshot in town, according to the Herald. Brazilian superstar Neymar, along with the rest of the South American powerhouse’s national team, trained at Florida International University on Tuesday in preparation for a Saturday game against Honduras at Sun Life Stadium.

The contract Beckham signed when he joined the Los Angeles Galaxy in 2007 gave him the option to become a MLS team owner after his retirement.

During a previous visit in June Beckham met with Gimenez and toured Sun Life and Alfonso Field at FIU Stadium. University officials gave a presentation to Beckham and Claure – a Bolivian billionaire who is a member of the FIU Board of Trustees – as they explained the draw of a professional team in Miami.

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