The businessman behind the bold bid to bring a Major League Soccer franchise to Miami in collaboration with Spanish giant Barcelona “has an uncanny knack for pouncing on opportunities at just the right time and the ingenuity to carry out his ideas,” writes Michelle Kaufman, citing “those who know him best.”
Bolivian native and South Beach resident Marcelo Claure, 37, owns Brightstar Communications, the $5 billion Miami-based cellphone distribution empire he started from scratch. He also, says Kaufman, “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.”
Claure’s plan is that he will pay the franchise fee if Miami’s bid is successful, and that Barcelona will run the team. “‘I basically am outsourcing the management part of my football business to Barcelona, one of the greatest, most respected clubs in the world,” said Claure. “Barcelona plays the style of soccer everyone loves to watch, and if we put on a good, quality show, people will come. This will not be an inferior product. It will be Barca’s sister team.”
Claure’s attorney Clay Parker lauds his client’s “amazing knack for seeing through the factors that are unimportant and focusing on the important ones. He seizes opportunities, is extremely creative, and has the backbone to go ahead and say, Let’s try it.”