Beckham tried to secure Bale transfer to Inter Miami before LAFC move

David Beckham’s Inter Miami attempted to beat Major League Soccer rivals Los Angeles FC to the signing of Gareth Bale, according to reports in the United States.

The Miami Herald claims that Bale had held initial talks with Beckham’s team, which was founded in 2020 and plays its home games in Fort Lauderdale under the tutelage of manager Phil Neville.

Beckham is principal owner of the team after negotiating a clause in the contract he signed when joining Los Angeles Galaxy in 2007 which meant to he was entitled to run a new franchise in the division after the end of his playing career.

Miami had added Bale to its official MLS Discovery List, which American top flight clubs use to inform the league of interest in high profile foreign players. But after Bale opted to move to the west rather than east coast, LAFC paid $75,000 to Miami in order to transfer his name to their own list.

Each MLS club is permitted three designated players, which is the term given to expensive foreign imports earning high salaries. Bale, though, will not count as a designated player because he has accepted a huge salary drop in order to join LAFC.

The 32-year-old will earn no more than $1.6m for the duration of the one-year contract he agreed with the team, though he could become a designated player in his second season if he opts to extend his deal into 2024, and option included in the deal he has signed.

Bale enjoyed a glorious spell with Real Madrid after signing from Tottenham Hotspur in 2013. The former Southampton player won five UEFA Champions League trophies and three La Liga titles during a nine-year spell in the Spanish capital, scoring 106 goals in 258 appearances.

Now, he says he is looking forward to playing for LAFC, with the MLS season due to conclude in mid-November just before Bale heads to Qatar with Wales for the FIFA World Cup.

‘I am extremely excited for this move to LAFC,’ Bale said. ‘This is the right place for me and my family and the right time in my career, and I cannot wait to get started working with the team and getting ready to win more trophies in Los Angeles.’

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