Henry To Headline Barca MLS Bid?

It is no longer a secret that FC Barcelona are bidding to have a team, based in Miami, included in the MLS from 2010 onwards, but the identity of their preferred star signing will come as a shock to everyone.

Thierry Henry has never quite settled in at the Nou Camp, but his future may yet involve wearing a blaugrana shirt...in Miami. The prospective new franchise, which is yet to be accepted (or even decide on a name), has set its sights on acquiring the services of the Frenchman.

Marcelo Claure, the Bolivian businessman and Barca member heavily involved in the bid, told 'Sport' "We have spoken about the possibility of Henry being in Miami in 2010, but the priority will always be Barca. They will decide eventually, because they know more about the footballing side of things. Henry would be the ideal man, because he has already stressed how much he likes this country in interviews with the American media. But we also have many more names in mind."

The push for the new franchise is gaining momentum, as Claure explains "In less than a week 3500 people registered on our website, and every day we gain in between 500 and 1000 members."

Claure could not expand on the finer details of the club, stating "The design of the shirt will be a combination of Miami and Barcelona. We want to integrate a great team and a great city. We are going to carry out an open contest to suggest the name of the club. We do not know whether to call it Barca America, Barcelona America, Miami Barca etc...we want all of Barca's worldwide fans to decide."

The verdict on whether or not the bid succeeds will be delivered in two weeks. Should it be succesful, Claure outlined the work ahead, saying "We will only have 15 months to form a team, but the process will be fun due to factors like choosing the team name and the colours."

Finally, Claure indulged in some obligatory praising of Joan Laporta, describing him as a "visionary, ahead of his time, with the desire to grow the club."

--Goal.com