Soccer Star Juan Mata Joins San Diego FC Ownership Group
Spanish football star and World Cup champion Juan Mata has joined San Diego FC as a partner, the club announced Wednesday.
Spanish football star and World Cup champion Juan Mata has joined San Diego FC as a partner, the club announced Wednesday.
Mata is the first active international soccer player – he plays in the Australian A-League – to hold an ownership stake in Major League Soccer (MLS). He joins David Beckham as only the second international player to be involved in ownership.
He said in a news release that San Diego FC and its Right to Dream Academy – a youth training center – have shown a commitment to making an impact in the community while establishing a vision for success, elements that align “perfectly with my own values.”
A global football icon joins our journey. pic.twitter.com/xZGdbeU7sK
— San Diego FC (@sandiegofc) November 20, 2024
“Joining San Diego FC as a partner is an exciting opportunity to help build something truly special in a city and league that are experiencing incredible growth,” Mata said.
He also is the second professional athlete to be a part owner of San Diego FC. Padre Manny Machado was among the initial group of owners that helped announce the expansion club’s arrival in San Diego last year.
Mata, 36, has had one of the most decorated careers in the world game. He won club honors in England, Spain, Turkey and Japan, and was a key player in the golden era of the Spanish men’s national team which won the 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2012 UEFA European Championship.
???? ¡ I’M JOINING SAN DIEGO FC OWNERSHIP GROUP! ????
Really happy to announce that I’m a partner at the newest and most special franchise in the MLS! @sandiegofc
Many thanks to the ownership group, @right2dream and @MLS for allowing me to be the first active player to be a part… pic.twitter.com/gY4TyxnVib— Juan Mata García (@juanmata8) November 20, 2024
He also is widely respected for his community contributions. He founded the Common Goal initiative, pledging one percent of his salary to social causes. Common Goal is a partner of Right to Dream, launched 25 years ago.
Mata has collaborated with the organization in various ways, including visits to Right to Dream academies in Egypt and Denmark, where he engaged with young athletes, and trained with the team.
SDFC Chairman Sir Mohamed Mansour called Mata “a serial winner, and in San Diego, we are committed to building a winning team for the long term.”
Mata, the club’s CEO Tom Penn added, “brings a global perspective” to San Diego FC.
A product of Real Madrid’s youth academy, Mata began his professional career with Real Madrid Castilla before transferring to Valencia CF in 2007, where he won the Copa del Rey the following year.
He signed for Chelsea FC in 2011, where he was pivotal in helping the London club capture the UEFA Champions League, FA Cup, and UEFA Europa League titles. He also won Chelsea’s Player of the Year honors twice in that span.
In 2014, Mata joined Manchester United, winning the FA Cup, Europa League and EFL Cup in nine seasons. Mata joined Turkish side Galatasaray in 2022, where he celebrated his first league title, before signing with Japan’s Vissel Kobe in 2023, where he won the league again.
He joined the Western Sydney Wanderers in Australia in September.
Mata is also an investor in Alpine Racing Ltd, a Formula 1 team backed by the Renault Group through Otro Capital, a private investment fund focused on sports, media and entertainment.
San Diego FC begins play in February.
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