Inter Miami CF: Ownership, Messi Pay, CF Meaning & Facts

David Beckham turned a $25 million MLS expansion option into a franchise now valued at over $1.3 billion — then recruited Lionel Messi to make South Florida his home. The numbers behind that partnership read like a business school case study.

League: Major League Soccer (Eastern Conference) · Owner: David Beckham (co-owner) · Star Player: Lionel Messi · Messi Annual Earnings: Up to $80 million · Home Stadium: Nu Stadium (since December 2025)

The table below consolidates key facts about Inter Miami CF from multiple sources.

What does CF mean in Inter Miami?

Full name and origins

The abbreviation CF in Inter Miami CF stands for Club Internacional de Fútbol — translating to International Football Club in English. This naming convention follows the Spanish and Latin American tradition where clubs use “Club de Fútbol” or similar designations to emphasize their international ambitions and South Florida’s multicultural character.

The ownership group first formed in 2013 as Miami Beckham United and now operates under the corporate entity Miami Freedom Park LLC, according to Wikipedia’s documentation on the club’s history. Beckham received the expansion franchise option as part of his 2007 LA Galaxy contract, paying $25 million for the right to bring professional soccer to South Florida.

Does David Beckham still own Inter Miami?

Ownership structure details

Yes, David Beckham remains a co-owner of Inter Miami CF, holding an estimated 10–15% stake in the franchise according to Companies History’s ownership analysis. The club is privately held by three principal co-owners: David Beckham, Jorge Mas, and Jose Mas, with Jorge Mas serving as Managing Owner and CEO.

The ownership evolution spans over a decade of restructuring. Beckham exercised his expansion option on February 5, 2014, through Miami Beckham United as the investment vehicle. The original ownership group included Marcelo Claure and Masayoshi Son, who were joined by the Mas brothers in 2017. Beckham subsequently bought out Simon Fuller’s stake in 2019 for $50 million. On September 17, 2021, Beckham and the Mas brothers completed the buyout of Claure and Son’s remaining stakes, consolidating control.

Ares Management, a global alternative investment firm, made a $150 million preferred equity investment in Inter Miami in 2021, according to ESPN’s reporting on the transaction. This investment expanded the club’s capital base but did not alter the three-person ownership structure at the top.

Beckham’s role has shifted from expansion-franchise pioneer to minority co-owner with strategic influence. His celebrity profile remains essential to the club’s brand, but the Mas brothers now hold majority operational control.

How much is Messi getting paid at Inter Miami?

Contract breakdown

Messi’s base salary with Inter Miami stands at $12 million annually according to the MLS player salary guide compiled by Capology’s salary database, while his guaranteed compensation totals $20.4 million when factoring in bonuses. However, these official figures represent only a fraction of his actual annual earnings.

Inter Miami co-owner Jorge Mas publicly stated that Messi earns between $70 and $80 million per year in total compensation, a figure confirmed by Bleacher Report’s financial analysis. The gap between the official MLS salary data and Mas’s public statements reflects the heavily incentivized structure of Messi’s contract, which ties compensation to performance metrics and club valuation thresholds.

Additional earnings

Messi’s contract includes a clause granting him a percentage of the club’s valuation, a provision that has proven extraordinarily valuable as Inter Miami’s worth has grown. When Messi arrived in Miami in July 2023, the franchise was valued at around $580 million. As of 2026, Inter Miami’s franchise valuation has surpassed $1.3 billion — more than doubling during his tenure, according to beIN SPORTS reporting on the valuation growth.

Estimates place Messi’s benefit from the club valuation clause at roughly $60 million, representing the accumulated value appreciation he has earned through this unique compensation structure. His original 2023 contract was worth up to $150 million over 2.5 years, with $50–60 million per year coming from Miami’s side. He signed a new contract extension in October 2024 that runs through the 2028 MLS season.

Messi’s contract also allows him to earn additional compensation through endorsement deals with Adidas, Fanatics, and Apple, partnerships that Inter Miami facilitates through its roster composition policies.

Does Lionel Messi own part of Inter Miami?

Messi’s role and investments

Messi’s role at Inter Miami is primarily that of a player rather than an owner. He does not hold a reported equity stake in Inter Miami CF itself. The confusion likely stems from his contractual clause that grants him a percentage of the club’s valuation as part of his compensation — this is a payment mechanism tied to his performance contract, not ownership in the traditional sense.

However, Messi does own stakes in other clubs. In January 2025, Messi became a new owner of Spanish club Cornellà, acquiring a minority share in the Catalan team where he briefly trained as a youth player before joining Barcelona, as reported by BBC Sport’s coverage of the announcement. This investment demonstrates Messi’s interest in football business beyond his playing career, though it remains separate from his Inter Miami situation.

The catch: while Messi benefits financially from Inter Miami’s rising valuation through his compensation clause, he does not possess voting rights or ownership stake in the club’s decision-making structure.

Who is richer, Messi or Beckham?

Net worth comparisons

On global richest footballers lists, Cristiano Ronaldo leads with an estimated $1.2 billion, while Messi consistently ranks ahead of Beckham in net worth estimates. Messi’s fortune stems from two decades of elite football earnings, supplemented by lucrative endorsement contracts with Adidas, Apple, and other global brands. Beckham’s wealth derives from his playing career, brand partnerships across fashion and lifestyle sectors, and his growing portfolio of business interests including Inter Miami.

Sources of wealth

Beckham’s estimated ownership stake of 10–15% in a $1.3 billion franchise represents a significant asset, but his net worth remains substantially below Messi’s lifetime football earnings and ongoing endorsements. The comparison illustrates how Messi’s income trajectory has outpaced Beckham’s post-playing career investments, though Beckham’s strategic positioning in MLS expansion has created substantial value that continues appreciating.

According to beIN SPORTS financial reporting, Messi’s earnings from his club valuation clause alone have reached approximately $60 million since joining in 2023 — demonstrating how the Argentine’s compensation structure diverges from traditional player contracts.

The pattern: Beckham’s wealth-building strategy relies on equity appreciation in his business ventures, while Messi’s wealth stems primarily from current income streams and accumulated earnings. As Inter Miami’s valuation continues growing, Beckham’s net worth position may close the gap if the franchise maintains its upward trajectory.

The comparison table below summarizes the key financial dimensions of both figures.

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David Beckham’s ownership has fueled ambitions, but Inter Miami’s 2026 roster and salaries underscore the massive financial commitments to stars like Messi earning up to $80M.

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