The billionaire owner of a struggling MLS soccer team has found his golden boy. Inter Miami, founded by co-owner David Beckham and now principally owned by Cuban-American businessman Jorge Mas and his brother Jose Mas, is reportedly signing the man many call the world’s greatest soccer player.
If the report holds, the move will undoubtedly turn a fading franchise into a national sensation. But, more than that, it will put Mas and his family in the spotlight in their home state of Florida.
Likely, the Argentine superstar’s arrival will also boost sales of both game tickets and jerseys bearing his name. And that, in turn, could significantly raise Mas’s net worth—as much as $1.3 billion, according to Forbes.
The Miami-based firm Mas owns and operates is MasTec MTZ -0.8%, an international construction company specializing in installing, maintaining, and repairing energy, utility, and communications infrastructure. The firm, publicly traded on the stock market, has been in the Mas family’s hands since 1969 when Jorge’s father, Jorge Mas Canosa, took over a Puerto Rican telephone company.
Mas has transformed that small business into a company that generates billions in revenue. The company has operations worldwide and is a leader in its field. It is, in fact, the largest construction and engineering company in Latin America, according to a recent report from Forbes.
In addition to his success at building a global construction empire, Mas has stakes in various sports teams. He and his brother are part owners of a Brazilian first-division club, Botafogo, and Real Zaragoza of Spain. And in 2021, they purchased a majority stake in the then-struggling Miami-based MLS franchise Inter Miami.
As the managing owner of that team, Mas has been angling for Messi practically from the moment he and Beckham were awarded an MLS franchise in 2018. The prospect of bringing the world’s best player to South Florida turned what would have otherwise been a routine announcement into a national sports sensation.
If the deal is inked, it will be a fitting capstone to an impressive career for the player referred to as “the best to play the game.” Mas and his brother have been in open courtship with the four-time Serie A champion for over two years. They have assured him that Miami is a place where he can succeed, both as a player and in his personal life. And that is likely enough to convince him to make the move. Hopefully, a final agreement will be inked before the World Cup ends this summer.
