April 19 – Major League Soccer (MLS) have found that David Beckham’s Inter Miami broke league budget rules with the signing of the France midfielder Blaise Matuidi. The franchise will be slapped with sanctions, to be announced “in the near future.”
MLS rules allow franchises to sign up to three players outside their salary cap – ironically the so-called ‘Beckham rule’. The league concluded that Matuidi, who joined the team from Juventus last August, “should have been classified as a designated player” for the 2020 season because of his salary.
Inter Miami were found to have four designated players – Matuidi, Gonzalo Higuaín, Mexico’s Rodolfo Pizarro and Argentina’s Matías Pellegrini. The Florida franchise bought out Pellegrini in order to comply with the MLS rules and send him to sister club and reserve team Fort Lauderdale CF, who play in the third tier of the American football pyramid.
The MLS said that “Matuidi’s compensation was above the limit for a TAM [targeted allocation money] player and he should have been classified as a designated player”.
The league added: “As a result, Inter Miami violated the designated player limit as the team had three designated players in addition to Matuidi during 2020.”
“We’ve been working with Matías, his representatives and MLS to reach an agreement, and at this time we believe this is the best option for all parties,” said the Miami sporting director Chris Henderson in a statement regarding Pellgrini’s move to Fort Lauderdale. “Matías is a talented young player with an exciting career ahead. He will remain with the organization as we work on finding an on-field opportunity and next steps for him.”
On Sunday, Inter Miami and new head coach Phil Neville will open their 2021 MLS campaign against LA Galaxy. In their maiden season, the Miami team finished 10th in the Eastern Conference before losing against Nashville in the first round of the playoffs.
Contact the writer of this story, Samindra Kunti, at moc.l1714141407labto1714141407ofdlr1714141407owedi1714141407sni@o1714141407fni1714141407