A Vietnamese-American venture capitalist and a group of investors are nearing the purchase of a troubled U.S. Major League Soccer (MLS) football (soccer) team, according to sources close to the matter.
Henry Nguyen – who was announced by McDonald's as the developmental licensee to build its brand in Vietnam in July last year – and famous film producer Peter Guber have persuaded other investors to buy the Los Angeles-based Chivas USA club, sources with knowledge of the plan told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper on Thursday.
Other investors include Malaysian billionaire Vincent Tan, ESPNbasketball analyst Tom Penn, and a group of around ten high-profile sports figures and investors in Los Angeles.
Chivas USA is poised to cease operations after this MLS season, and will then remain dormant for a minimum of two years before coming back as a totally different club, according to ESPN.
Henry Nguyen and his fellow investors could be unveiled as the newest MLS owners as early as Monday, when the league's Board of Governors meets in Los Angeles, according to The Los Angeles Times.
The new owners will rebrand the team and construct a new soccer-specific stadium, possibly located in Exposition Park, where the Sports Arena now stands, over the next three years, the newspaper said.
The new name for Chivas USA is slated to be officially announced by the end of this month.
The sale price for the team will be around US$100 million, according to ESPN.
There has been no announcement over what would happen to Chivas USA players if the team misses the next two seasons.
Henry Nguyen is known for his passion for sports. Besides bringing the famous McDonald’s fast food chain to Vietnam, Nguyen is also the chairman of XLE, the company that owns the Saigon Heat, Vietnam’s first professional basketball team.
XLE is also the organizer of the Vietnam University Games, a student-level sporting competition.
Hollywood filmmaker Peter Guber currently owns a share of the Los Angeles Dodgers baseball team and the NBA's Golden State Warriors.
He is chairman and CEO of Mandalay Entertainment Group – the producer of successful movies including Batman, Rain Man, Les Miserables, and Sleepless in Seattle – and chairman of Dick Clark Productions, which is the organizer of the Golden Globe Awards and the American Music Awards.
Major League Soccer is a professional soccer league representing the sport's highest level in both the United States and Canada.
The league is composed of 19 teams – 16 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada. The MLS regular season runs from March to October, with each team playing 34 games.
Many international football stars have played in the MLS, including David Beckham, Thierry Henry, Kaka, and David Villa.
