It’s not all glitz and glamor in the soccer business; you need intelligence to be successful. According to former Birmingham City FC managing director Karren Brady, who held the post at the club until 2009, Inter Miami owner David Beckham has got exactly that, but in the form of his wife Victoria. The $123 million worth Karren Brady suggests that Beckham has managed to turn the tide of soccer in the US, along with the help of his wife Victoria Beckham, who she claims is the brains of the operation. This comes shortly after Tom Brady invested in Birmingham City FC.

NFL icon Tom Brady made an investment in Birmingham City FC, following the trend of American owners flocking to invest in soccer clubs in the UK. Chelsea FC was bought over by Todd Boehly and co. in the summer of 2022, while Manchester United and Liverpool have been owned by the Glazers and FSG even before that. Lower down the English divisions, even minnows Wrexham saw Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenny buy the Welsh club in 2020. This is a clear trend.

The Beckhams have revolutionized soccer in the US, says Karren Brady

On the opposite end of the spectrum is an Englishman owning an American club: that’s David Beckham and Inter Miami.

Beckham created the franchise in 2018 when soccer’s popularity in the US was a far cry from what it is today. And Karren Brady suggests that the Beckhams are at the heart of the sport’s rise in the country.

In her article for The Sun, media executive Brady writes: “Beckham missed a few chances on the field but hardly any at all in business. While talking of Victoria, she states “I have long suspected his wife — former Spice Girl Victoria  — has played a major part in his off-pitch success.”

“He has the smile, she has the brains,” she added.

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Brady reckons that the couple took a brave, decisive, and lucrative call to sign Lionel Messi this summer: a decision that has led to the surging popularity of soccer in the US at the moment.

David Beckham made an astute move in signing Lionel Messi

David Beckham’s swift move to buy Messi after the World Cup winner wanted to leave PSG was a pivotal one. This has led to widespread interest in soccer in the US with high net-worth individuals from America and abroad flocking to watch the Argentine icon play in the US. Furthermore, ticket prices have skyrocketed since Messi graced the MLS.

Messi has scored 11 goals in 10 games for Inter Miami. But this soccer fever is more down to the transfer as a business decision as compared to Messi’s performances in an Inter Miami shirt. It’s largely apparent that the Beckhams’ move to bring Messi to Miami has reaped rich dividends. This comes as no surprise considering the huge media frenzy surrounding the Argentine forward before and after he signed for the Beckhams’ MLS franchise.

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Messi-mania has gripped the nation for the moment. Nevertheless, while the future of American soccer is surely exciting, this current phase of the sport’s popularity in the US is all down to the brains of the Beckhams.