TOAlthough Blaise Matuidi’s time in MLS with Inter Miami did not provide the desired results on the pitch, his spell in Florida has helped inspire his next step. Matuidi has had an interest in business for a number of years, investing in various tech startups, including alongside the NBA star LeBron James.
“When I see athletes here in the United States, I think they have something different to European athletes and the difference is that they know about business. They are experts in their own field but they are also very focused on doing other things in life, especially business,” says the Frenchman.
“I think in Europe our goals are in sport and we are focused on that. I think there are few players that are open-minded but a lot are focused only on the sport. I understand that, as we are born like that. In the academy, people say: ‘I have to be focused only on football.’ Here in the United States, it is something different as when sportspeople go to university they go with engineers, people who work with electrics, and they are all together. In Europe when we go to academies, we are only players. I think it is a big difference and that’s when we create Origins.”
Origins is planned as a tech investment fund for athletes, including Matuidi’s fellow World Cup winners N’Golo Kante and Olivier Giroud. The athletes aim to pool their financial clout and social media influence to help grow new companies. Matuidi wants to show players they can look outside of sports for opportunities and show they are more than just athletes.
Inter Miami co-owner David Beckham is a prime example of a footballer who has moved into the business world. When Matuidi was looking for a new challenge, it was his former Paris Saint-Germain teammate’s new venture, Inter Miami, that came calling for his services, persuading him to leave Europe for the club’s inaugural MLS season in 2020.
Matuidi was left off the team’s roster for the 2022 season, despite having a year remaining on his contract, leaving him more time to focus on his business interests.
“I played with David in the past at Paris Saint-Germain, not for too long but it was a good time,” Matuidi says. “I was happy because he had had this experience and he helped Paris Saint-Germain a lot. When I heard Inter Miami was interested in signing me, David was a big part of my thinking, so I was happy to join his team because he is an example with his experience, what he did in his great career and now as an owner for me is something special.
“Our relationship is good and he’s a good guy, and he wants his team to win. When he says things, he does it. I have great respect for him. He does n’t speak to the players a lot but when he does you understand his goal and where he wants to go.
Getting Matuidi to move to the MLS at the age of 32 was a coup for Inter Miami in their infancy, especially as he could have stayed in the relative comfort of Europe.
“For me it was a new challenge. In Europe I played a lot of games, I won a lot of titles [three with Juventus and four with PSG] and was thinking that I needed something new for me and my family,” he says. “I decided to move on because my family was my first thought, and then the challenge. I know MLS is not like Europe, not in terms of quality, but for me it was something I wanted to do with this new challenge.”
Inter Miami are managed by another former Beckham’s teammate, Phil Neville. So far, his time in charge of him has been underwhelming: the club finished 10th and 11th in the Eastern Conference in their first two seasons, missing the playoffs on both occasions. This season has been even worse: they have lost three of their first four games, and have the worst record in the entire league.
Neville’s job is under scrutiny – and Beckham may be in the awkward position of having to fire his friend – but the former England defender cannot be blamed entirely for the club’s woes. Inter Miami are in rebuilding mode after the club were fined $2m and had wage sanctions imposed after an investigation found they violated roster designation rules for Matuidi and Andrés Reyes.
“There are a lot of young players,” Matuidi says. “It is never easy when you are a new team, you need time and I think Inter Miami needs time. It is not an easy league and you need a team with experience … If you look at Europe, a team like Manchester City before they won [the Premier League] it took time, as it did with Chelsea. When anyone plays Inter Miami, they want to beat us because we are one of the most popular teams in the league, that is why it is not easy.”
In footballing terms, Matuidi’s future is uncertain. Gone are the days when Juventus paid PSG an initial €20m ($16m) for his services from him and his ambition of moving to England is long gone. “In the past I was close to moving to the Premier League, to Arsenal, that was my dream. I played in Italy and France, and a lot of people were saying: ‘How you play, you need to move to the Premier League.’ Unfortunately, I didn’t, so you never know.”
Matuidi will be hoping he does not miss out on any opportunities in his other career.
www.theguardian.com
George is Digismak’s reported cum editor with 13 years of experience in Journalism