In the footsteps of David Beckham. Former Spanish international Juan Mata announced on Tuesday November 20 in a message published on his X account (formerly Twitter) that he had joined the San Diego FC shareholder group. The Californian franchise, founded in 2023, will join Major League Soccer in 2025. At 36, Juan Mata has still not hung up his boots. After a short stint with Vissel Kobe in Japan, he joined the Western Sydney Wanderers club in Australia in September 2024. At the initiative of creating this new franchise based near the Mexican border, Egyptian-British billionaire Mohamed Mansour paid MLS a record expansion fee of $500 million to enter the North American championship. The businessman is the head of the Mansour Group, a conglomerate worth 6 billion dollars (5.5 billion euros).
Largest player shareholder in MLS
“I am very excited to announce that I am a partner in the newest and most special franchise in MLS (San Diego) Many thanks to the Right to Dream ownership group and MLS for allowing me to be the first active player to become part-owner of a league club, and the second after David Beckham. It’s a real honor”wrote the former Manchester United player on X.
“I am really excited to continue my journey using football as a social tool for change with the Right to Dream and CommonGoalOrg community. I see this step as an opportunity to help build something truly special in a city and league that is experiencing incredible growth, and I look forward to being involved and engaging in the positive social impact that corresponds to the vision of the club and my personal vision of the beautiful game”concluded the 2010 world champion with La Roja.
Morocco
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