November 23 - David Beckham (pictured) will be given the first option of buying Major League Soccer's (MLS) 20th franchise team, Commissioner Don Garber has revealed.
The former England captain has made no secret of his desire to become involved in owning a club and that was part of the deal that helped lure him from Real Madrid to Los Angeles Galaxy in 2007.
Garber said: "David has the option for our 20th team and that option can't be exercised until after 2011 or after he stops playing.
"So we've got some time to figure that one out."
MLS currently has 15 teams with Philadelphia joining in 2010 followed by Portland and Vancouver in 2011.
Montreal lead the chase to become the league's 19th team, providing that they can raise the $40 million (£24 million) needed to buy one.
Garber said: "The ownership group is here [in Seattle] and we've spent some time meeting them this weekend and we're making progress.
"We hope to have a 19th team in the league by 2012 and Montreal is the leading candidate there but we've got some work to do.
"Most importantly, their stadium needs to be renovated, needs to be expanded and it's probably not suitable for an MLS team today."
Beckham needed a series of pain-killing injections to take part in the MLS Cup Final at the Qwest in Seattle last night when Galaxy were beaten 5-4 on penalties by Real Salt Lake after the match had ended 1-1.
Garber nevertheless again praised Beckham's contribution to the sport in the US.
He said: "He gave us the boost we needed, when we needed it most.
"More people know of us now than in any time in the league's history."
Garber said he was touring a remote part of southwest China last summer during the Beijing Olympics.
He said: "And my guide there he even knew David was in MLS."
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