Juan Mata is now the latest high-profile player or former player to join the ownership game after he bought a share in MLS expansion side San Diego FC.
The former Manchester United and Chelsea midfielder will become the first active international soccer player to hold an ownership stake in Major League Soccer, with the Spaniard currently plying his trade with Australian A-League club Western Sydney Wanderers. San Diego FC will enter the MLS in 2025 as the 30th team in the competition. They will play their games at the SnapDragon Stadium in California, which can hold 35,000 fans.
The World Cup and Champions League winner says it is an “exciting opportunity to help build something truly special”. San Diego chairman Sir Mohamed Mansour said the 36-year-old is a “serial winner” and believes he aligns with the club’s ambition to “build a winning team for the long-term”. But Mata is just the latest famous face from the pitch to take the reins of a club from the boardroom instead of the dugout. Record Sport looks through some names you may hold dear and how they are looking to build a new legacy by pulling the strings.
Inter Miami – David Beckham
Old Golden Balls was savvy with this one. A clause was placed in his contract when he signed for La Galaxy from Real Madrid in 2007 that he could buy an MLS expansion team for $25 million. And he pounced in March 2014 and Inter Miami was born. Currently, Beckham is the president and co-owner of the American Major League Soccer side Inter Miami CF, with club operations starting in 2020.
The club has shot to stardom on the field as well with the likes of Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba joining the Beckham revolution.
Salford City – Man Utd’s class of ’92
In 2014, the Manchester United Class of ’92 bought over Salford City before selling 50 per cent of the club’s share stake to Singapore-based billionaire Peter Lim. The remaining half was split between Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Nicky Butt, and the Neville brothers Gary and Phil. Major upgrades to the Peninsula Stadium and big investment on the playing side has helped take Salford to a full-time, professional club and to the Football League, with the club now in League Two.
In January 2019, it was announced David Beckham had also bought a 10 per cent stake in the club. Does he ever sleep?
Miami FC – Paolo Maldini
Before Inter Miami, there was Miami FC which dubs itself the city’s longest-tenured professional soccer club, owned by Silva International Investments owner Riccardo Silva. The club was co-founded with legendary Italian defender Paolo Maldini. The World Cup winner and five-time European Cup winner helped raise the club’s profile and find its first head coach, Alessandro Nesta. The team plays at the 20,000 seater Pitbull Stadium and competes in the USL Championship, the second tier of the American soccer pyramid. Maldini left in 2018 to return to AC Milan as technical director.
Phoenix Rising – Didier Drogba
Phoenix Rising FC is the highest-level professional soccer franchise in Arizona history. Established in 2016, the club won the 2023 USL Championship as well as the 2023, 2020 and 2018 Western Conference Titles. And the former Chelsea striker played a huge role. The Ivorian signed in 2017 in a playing role before transitioning to an executive position. He became a minority owner, making him the first player-owner in football history. He shares ownership with Advantage Sports Union CEO, Alex Zheng, and club chairman Berke Bakay. Drogba retired as a player in 2018 at the age of 40, but remains in the US to work on their bid to join MLS.
Real Valladolid/Cruzeiro – Ronaldo
El Phenomeno has all his eggs in two baskets as the former Brazil icon looks to build a football empire. The former Real Madrid striker became the majority owner of Spanish La Liga club Real Valladolid in September 2018 after buying a 51 per cent controlling stake in the club for €30 million. At his unveiling as the club’s new owner at Valladolid city hall, Ronaldo stated, “I have gone through many stages in my training in football to prepare for this. Football is all about passion. We want to build the best team possible to compete while also giving information about our management with transparency.”
In December 2021, Ronaldo bought a controlling stake in his boyhood Brazilian club Cruzeiro for $70 million. He stated he wants to “give back to Cruzeiro and take them where they deserve to be.” In April this year he announced he had agreed to sell his ownership stake for undisclosed terms to BPW Sports company, but would continue on the club’s board.
Helsingør – Andres Iniesta
The decorated Spanish midfielder become co-owner of the Danish third-tier club Helsingør earlier this month. It is the Barcelona icon’s first major off-field venture since retiring in October following a glittering career. Iniesta played his final professional match for the United Arab Emirates side Emirates Club in May and officially retired at the age of 40. Helsingør announced that NSN, the sports management and consulting company jointly founded by Iniesta, would take control alongside the Swiss investment group Stoneweg.
Caen – Kylian Mbappé
The Real Madrid superstar completed the takeover of Ligue 2 side Caen in July of this year. Interconnected Ventures, founded by Mbappe, has bought a majority stake in the French club through its investment arm, Coalition Capital. The World Cup-winners investment was around £12.6m. of his own money via the investment fund. Caen finished sixth last season and are aiming for promotion to Ligue 1, having last played there in 2019.
San Diego 1904 – Eden Hazard (joint with Demba Ba, Yohan Cabaye, Moussa Sow)
In June 2017, the gifted Belgian became a part-owner of expansion North American Soccer League franchise San Diego 1904 FC to begin play in 2018, alongside fellow pros Demba Ba, Yohan Cabaye and Moussa Sow. The team was initially founded in 2016 and began play in the National Independent Soccer Association (NISA) in 2019. The team’s mission was to develop players to compete at the world’s greatest clubs. In December 2021, 1904 FC was absorbed by Albion San Diego, which took over the team’s membership in the NISA.
Hammarby IF – Zlatan Ibrahimovic
The towering Swede became a part-owner of Hammarby in 2019 by investing in sports and live entertainment company AEG, which owns LA Galaxy and had a minority stake in Hammarby. Ibrahimovic took a 23.5 per cent stake in the club., which competes in Sweden’s first tier, Allsvenskan. The former AC Milan and Barcelona striker even trained with the club during the coronavirus lockdown in 2020 and actually scored in a friendly match. You never lose it.
Ibrahimovic’s investment in Hammarby was, in fact, met with anger from some Malmo fans, the Swedish club he started his career with. Furious supporters vandalized a statue of him outside their stadium and sprayed graffiti on a building owned by Ibrahimovic in Stockholm, calling him “Judas”.
Andorra FC – Gerard Pique
The former Blaugrana centre back bought FC Andorra in 2019, when it was a fifth-tier club, through his business Kosmos Holdings. The club was founded in 1942 and is located in the Principality of Andorra on the Catalan border. The club plays at the Estadi Nacional, which has a capacity of 3,306 and competes in Primera Federación – Group 1, in the Spanish league system.
The club’s lease at the stadium expires in June 2024, and the local government will not renew it. The club had planned to build a new stadium in Encamp, but the project was abandoned due to high costs. In 2021, the club qualified for the promotion play-offs to Segunda División for the first time, but was eliminated in the first round. In 2022, the club was promoted to the Segunda División for the first time in its history. In 2024, the club was relegated back to the third division.