Nassef Sawiris, Egypt’s richest man, and U.S. billionaire Wes Edens have entered into an “exclusive negotiating agreement” with Major League Soccer (MLS) to secure the license for the league’s 30th team.
MLS is a men’s professional soccer league and the highest level of professional soccer in the United States and Canada. It is divided into the Eastern and Western conferences, with teams assigned to each conference based on their geographical location.
The league has 28 teams, with 25 in the United States and three in Canada. With the addition of St. Louis City and the arrival of the 30th franchise, the league plans to expand to 30 clubs by 2024.
The move by the two billionaires, who are co-owners of English football club Aston Villa, get them one step closer to obtaining an MLS license and forging the league’s 30th team, the Las Vegas Villains.
Las Vegas will be the home of the MLS’ extended franchise, pending approval of the team’s license. While the exact date of the team’s debut is unknown, MLS Commissioner Don Garber recently said the extension franchise will not begin to play until 2023.
Sawiris and Edens are now concentrating on market research and planning for the expansion team’s practice facility, corporate offices and stadium in Las Vegas in a transaction worth around £239 million to purchase the license from MLS.
“As one of the world’s premier sports and entertainment markets with a fast-growing and diverse community, Las Vegas is the ideal home for an MLS expansion team,” Sawiris and Edens said in a statement. The billionaires expressed optimism that the final negotiations will result in a world-class franchise, as well as major economic and cultural advantages for the larger Las Vegas region.
