MLS Chief Hopes Harry Kane Will Follow Messi and Move to America

MLS commissioner Don Garber has said he would love England captain Harry Kane to move to the league one day, saying it would help fulfil a dream that David Beckham kept alive.

Kane, 33, is in the running for the Ballon d'Or after scoring 73 goals for club and country in a season that saw him win the Bundesliga with Bayern Munich and finish third at the World Cup. 

He shows no sign of slowing down. In Tuesday's 3-0 Nations League win over Czechia, he marked his record-equalling 125th England cap by taking his international tally to 91 goals. 

He scored six times across the four-match camp, which began with him revealing an interest in eventually moving to MLS.

"I'd love for him to do that," Garber said. "I think, for me, it is the fulfilment of the dream that we had to build a proper soccer league that would drive a soccer nation. That sounds colloquial but actually we have that written down." 

He added: "We wanted to create something that would have the Harry Kanes of the world say 'I'd kind of like to play in MLS.' And I think Messi proved that."

Garber said landing Messi was not easy. "That was a competitive process, working to ensure that we had a dynamic that would be better than going back to Barca, working a dynamic that would not have him want to play in Saudi Arabia," he said. 

He went on: "Play in Miami, have them be able to build a new stadium and have him set records and be an MVP, and then have an unbelievable goodbye [this week] from his international career."

He also paid tribute to another England captain. Beckham's move to LA Galaxy sparked the league's growth, which sped up when he helped set up Inter Miami and sign Messi in 2023. Garber would not rank one above the other. 

"David put this league on the path to credibility and respect. In the prime of his career, he came to LA," he said. 

"He came into Major League Soccer and showed the world that this league can be competitive, it could be respected, it could be fun, it could have great players."

He continued: "It attracted [Thierry] Henry and many, many other players right after that, so without David there's probably no Major League Soccer. That being said, Major League Soccer would not be the global phenomenon and not be sort of on the hearts and minds of just about anybody in the world without Leo Messi."

Garber, 68, will become chairman at the turn of the year, after holding the commissioner's job since 1999. He says the league has built the world's "biggest commercial market for the sport" in that time, and he wants more. "We just went from a country road, now we're getting onto the highway," he told the Press Association. "And we've got to get better."

He wants MLS clubs to be stronger on the world stage. "We have to have a league that is more competitive, that has an ability to get into the Club World Cup and win games. Miami won one," he said. 

He added: "Not just be there but have people think that an MLS team can compete against other clubs in the world."