David Beckham's move into Major League Soccer was an unqualified success and should pave the way for other high-profile European players to migrate to the United States, commissioner Don Garber said Wednesday.

 

Garber said he expected the 12-year-old league to eventually sign players like Barcelona's Ronaldinho and Thierry Henry.

 

"David was really a home run for us, to use a baseball analogy," Garber said at the Reuters Media Summit.

 

Garber said the league, which owns all player contracts, pays the 32-year-old English midfielder US$5.5 million in base salary. He confirmed reports that Beckham stands to earn US$250 million should he meet other incentives in his five-year contract, like revenue sharing and endorsements.

 

"I think he's going to make the US$250 million when the five years are up," said Garber. "I really believe that. Just look at what he's been able to generate this year.

 

"He is just an incredible marketing machine. And a lot of that has to do with him being quite the celebrity. If I was a sponsor, I would want him to represent me because he's just a quality guy."

 

Beckham, who joined the Los Angeles Galaxy, was injured for much of the season but played before sell-out crowds almost every time he walked on the pitch.

 

Garber cautioned, however, that the 14-team league needs to expand beyond the David Beckham era.

 

"Keep in mind that he's still one player and he's going to be with us for the next four years," said Garber. "You can't rely on any one player to achieve the objectives you want to achieve."

 

Casual fans

 

Garber was hopeful casual soccer fans who saw Beckham play "get turned on to the sport and become a ticket-buying fan of the league."

 

He said he believes MLS signing of Beckham was just the beginning of high-profile players heading to the United States.

 

"I would hope to see guys like Ronaldinho and Thierry Henry, who has expressed interest in coming here at the end of his contract (with Barcelona).

 

"I hope to see at some point, certainly during my tenure as commissioner, players like that in Major League Soccer. And with Beckham being successful and being signed, it's hard to imagine you wouldn't see players like that in MLS."

 

The 50-year-old Garber expected the league's recruitment effort in South America to pay dividends.

 

"This year we signed 20 players from Argentina and Brazil. Three of them were leading scorers and our MVP was from Brazil.

 

"They represent this new community we are going after, they are affordable, they are passionate players and they want to be here."

 

Garber said MLS was not expecting to find soccer's next superstar from scouting forays abroad, but hoped to develop one from homegrown talent.

 

"I don't think we're going to be able to compete against the super clubs to find some guy on the streets of Rio as much as I believe there is some kid who might be on the streets of LA or Newark.

 

"And he could end up being the next Ronaldinho and what a great thing that would be for our league and our country."

 

(Agencies via China Daily November 30, 2007)