At 37, Billionaire Marcelo Claure has succeeded in almost everything he’s tried. Now he hopes to bring a Major League Soccer franchise to Miami.

Those who know him best say the 37-year-old Bolivian native and South Beach resident has an uncanny knack for pouncing on opportunities at just the right time and the ingenuity to carry out his ideas. While a student at Bentley College in Boston, he ran a lucrative frequent-flier trading business out of his dorm room. He also has the guts to take risks, wisdom to surround himself with the right partners, and a personality as large as his 6-foot-6 frame. In other words, business associates say, the perfect person to bring Major League Soccer back to Miami.

(Repeat, he is 37…)

Image via MiamiHerald

Portland Sports Reporter Dwight Jaymes is reporting that Portland City Commisioner Randy Leonard met with Timbers owner Merritt Paulson and MLS Commissioner Don Garber last week in NYC regarding the expansion bid. Portland’s bid will depend on the feasibility of improvements to PGE Park.

Jaymes has a tantalizing quote attributed to Portland City Commissioner Leonard…

“It’s clear to me that it’s ours to lose…”

Image via Shutterfly

If you live in Los Angeles, or if you are planning on being out here for MLS Cup, then you might want to try and head down to USC on November 20th. The USC Sports Business Insitute has invited Don Garber to discuss the state of Major League Soccer, where it’s been and where it’s headed. Admission is $50, but if you enter the discount code of MLS, you get 20% off. Head here to register.

Some damn good goals this season.

An underdog supporters group inspired by “The Sons of Ben” in Philadelphia springs up in Detroit with the goal of getting an MLS team. Crazy? Maybe. A long shot? Certainly. But is the Sons of Ben story and the new Philadelphia team something that could happen again, this time in the Midwest? Are these the “Sons” of the “Sons of Ben”…?

Recently, amidst all the Bizjournal and MLS-rumors reportage on MLS expansion (Miami, Montreal, Portland, St. Louis, Atlanta, Ottowa, and Vancouver), I met a very different group of soccer supporters who are just as committed to being awarded an MLS team someday. Sure, this group isn’t a collection of wealthy investors, but these guys are rich in other ways, and they’ve already started building a grassroots soccer supporter movement inspired by the Sons of Ben that many cities would be envious of. These are the Motor City Supporters, and this is their funny, brave and inspiring story…

More after the jump

(more…)

New Miami website here…

Image via Miamifcb