MLS commissioner urges Kane to follow Messi and Beckham to the United States

MLS commissioner Don Garber has urged Harry Kane to make the move to Major League Soccer, describing the England captain’s interest as the realisation of a vision that David Beckham first helped bring to life more than two decades ago.

Garber’s comments came after Kane marked his record-equalling 125th England cap by scoring twice in Tuesday’s 3-0 UEFA Nations League victory over Czechia, taking his international tally to 91 goals. The 33-year-old had earlier outlined plans for a potential MLS move, alongside a separate ambition to try his hand as an NFL kicker.

“I’d love for him to do that,” Garber said. “I think, for me, it is the fulfilment of the dream that we had to build a proper soccer league that would drive a soccer nation. We wanted to create something that would have the Harry Kanes of the world say ‘I’d kind of like to play in MLS’. And I think Messi proved that.”

Kane arrives at this crossroads in fine form. The Bayern Munich striker is shortlisted for the Ballon d’Or after contributing 73 goals for club and country across a season that also brought a Bundesliga title and a World Cup bronze medal. His most recent four-match international spell yielded six goals, offering little evidence that his powers are diminishing.

Garber, who is preparing to step down after holding the commissioner role since 1999, credited Beckham’s 2007 move to LA Galaxy as the moment that set the league on a credible path, and Lionel Messi’s arrival at Inter Miami in 2023 as the moment it became a global phenomenon.

“David put this league on the path to credibility and respect,” Garber said. “In the prime of his career, he came to LA and showed the world that this league can be competitive, it could be respected, it could be fun, it could have great players. It attracted Henry and many, many other players right after that, so without David there’s probably no Major League Soccer.”

On Messi’s impact, Garber described the process of convincing the Argentine to choose Miami over a return to Barcelona or a move to Saudi Arabia as a competitive effort that ultimately paid off. Messi went on to set records, win MVP honours, and this week bid farewell to his international career with Argentina.

With Beckham now an Inter Miami co-owner and Messi having elevated the league’s global profile, Garber sees Kane as the next figure capable of carrying that momentum forward — should the striker choose to follow the path his predecessors helped pave.