'Always': David Beckham confirms the reasons he decided to sign Lionel Messi for Inter Miami

Inter Miami changed MLS forever last year with the signing of Lionel Messi, a deal that David Beckham had a significant hand in.

The Herons’ co-owner recently revealed how the Florida lifestyle appealed to Messi and his family, with the Argentine international taking to life in MLS like a duck to water with the forward bagging 17 goals and ten assists in just 18 league appearances.

With Messi rejecting a world-record contract offer from Saudi Arabia to make the move to Inter Miami possible, it’s clear that the 37-year-old attacker was eager to depart Europe for a new chapter in his life in the United States.

And Beckham has now revealed why he decided to sign Messi for Inter Miami.

Inter Miami signing Messi is Beckham’s ‘gift’ to America

Speaking on Rio Ferdinand Presents, the former Manchester United superstar shared how Inter Miami signing Messi was Beckham’s ‘gift’ to America, with the United States deserving of a superstar as big as the Argentine for all they have given the Herons’ co-owner.

Beckham said when asked about the motivation behind signing Messi: “When you bring someone like Leo to America, I always said that it was our gift. As an ownership group and as a person who owns the club, I wanted to do something for the game.

“But I also wanted to do something for America, because they’ve given me so much over the years and they’ve given me so much love, that to bring Leo to inspire the next generation of players in America, that’s what we wanted to do.

“With Leo, we knew what we were bringing and I knew that he was going to be successful on the field, but I also knew he was going to help our club off the field.”

Messi joining MLS has changed soccer forever in America

Inter Miami are now the biggest and best side in MLS having made some truly blockbuster moves that have shifted the needle in the United States as to what a franchise can achieve with the right motivation.

And one year after the signing, a real claim can be made that Messi has changed soccer forever in America, with attendance figures in MLS reaching record numbers this season in part to the arrival of the Argentine. And boy, were they treated to a show.

With the FIFA World Cup coming to the USA in 2026, Messi’s influence will only push the game further in America, and Beckham should be praised for doing all the work behind the scenes in recent years to get Inter Miami and the sport to where it is now.