Bournemouth’s new American owner Bill Foley claims that the purchase of his new club is a “bargain” compared to the price it would have cost to establish an expansion team to the MLS in Las Vegas. Also an owner of the NHL’s Las Vegas Golden Knights, Foley acquired a 50.1% stake in Bournemouth through his firm, Cannae Holdings, for a fee of $126 million.
While initially serious about building an MLS expansion team, Foley found the financial cost of the project to be too high. “The MLS, unfortunately, requires a stadium to be built and, in the United States, that is costing $600-700m. The franchise fee itself, I think, is $300m so you are into it for a billion dollars before you have a team,” Foley explained.
For Foley, the purchase of his Premier League team was more practical due to the existence of the team’s stadium and players, not to mention its existing participation in competitions. For him, the focus of the acquisition is more on improving the club.
The fees surrounding MLS expansion teams have skyrocketed in recent years. While $10 million was paid to establish Toronto FC in 2007, a record fee of $325 million was required for Charlotte FC in 2019.
