Las Vegas could be poised to land an MLS franchise and the potential 30th team in the league could have ties to the Premier League in England, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported Friday.
Aston Villa FC co-owners Wes Edens and Naseef Sawiris have entered into exclusive negotiations for a franchise with MLS, according to the report. The duo has owned Aston Villa since 2018, with the club earning promotion into the Premier League for the 2019-20 season.
MLS’s 28th team, Charlotte FC, will make its debut in the upcoming season. St. Louis will be home to the league’s 29th team in 2023. MLS Commissioner Don Garber already has said a 30th team is not expected to join the league until St. Louis does in 2023.
Phoenix and San Diego, both of whom have teams in the second-tier USL, were also believed to be interested in becoming home to an MLS expansion franchise.
According to the Review-Journal report, Edens and Sawiris were connected to a trademark filing in June for the name “Las Vegas Villains.”
While the NFL’s Las Vegas Raiders play in the new Allegiant Stadium, which can handle a capacity crowd of 61,000 for soccer, the potential MLS franchise in Sin City would ultimately end up playing in a soccer-specific stadium. A possible location would be on Las Vegas Blvd., south of McCarran International Airport.
Edens also is part of a group that purchased the Milwaukee Bucks in 2014, with the team winning the NBA Finals last season. Edens is a native of Montana, while Sawiris is a native of Egypt, who attended the University of Chicago.
–Field Level Media