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New LA-based team for MLS

October 31, 2014

A new club has been granted entry to the US professional soccer league, the MLS. The team, which is currently known as Los Angeles Football Club, is owned by some high-profile names and will begin operations in 2017.

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Los Angeles Football Club owners, at the club's opening
Image: Getty Images/Charley Gallay

Major League Soccer's new Los Angeles franchise - Los Angeles Football Club - has been unveiled by an astounding 22-person ownership group headed by Vietnamese-American venture capitalist Henry Nguyen.

"We believe this team can become one of the most outstanding clubs in Major League Soccer and a globally-recognized brand," Nguyen said in a statement. "Today is day one and time for us to focus on developing a world-class stadium for the club to play in and for fans to enjoy."

Basketball Hall of Famer Magic Johnson and Peter Guber, who are both part of the ownership of Major League Baseball's Los Angeles Dodgers, are also among the leaders of the consortium listed on the club's website.

Others include Cardiff City owner Vincent Tan, former U.S. women's soccer legend Mia Hamm, celebrity life-coach Tony Robbins and Hamm's husband and former Major League Baseball player Nomar Garciaparra.

The new team is expected to start play in the 2017 MLS season and will compete with the existing LA Galaxy club for support. As well as plans for a new stadium, the club's coach and player roster have still not been set. The club's management will apparently be open to fan suggestions on the team's eventual name and logo.

"We will start playing in 2017 and fans will have a major voice in key decisions of the club. From our official name and logo, to kits and the stadium experience," read a statement on the LAFC.com website.

Earlier in the week, the league announced that the struggling Chivas USA club, also based in Los Angeles, had ceased operations.

"Los Angeles is a diverse, vibrant market with millions of soccer fans, and we look forward to an intense rivalry between the Galaxy and Los Angeles Football Club," said MLS Commissioner Don Garber.

jh/al (AFP, Reuters)