Inter Miami owner David Beckham has been in contact with Real Madrid president Florentino Perez to explore the possibility of signing James Rodriguez for his new Major League Soccer franchise, Goal has learned .
Beckham shares a strong relationship with Perez, with the Blancos supremo having brought the former England captain to the Santiago Bernabeu as one of his 'Galactico' signings when securing his signature from Manchester United in 2003.
Indeed, it is understood that Perez is willing to negotiate for Colombia international James, keeping the door open for the sale of a player who has barely featured under the stewardship of Zinedine Zidane.
Sources close to the club have told Goal that Beckham considers the 28-year-old to be a great footballer despite his struggles at Madrid and sees him as the big-ticket signing required to take his fledgling MLS side to the next level in terms of commercialisation.
Signing a player of James' calibre while still in the peak years of his career would also be seen as a big coup for the US top flight as a whole, with questions still being asked as to whether MLS will ever reach its goal of competing with top European leagues in terms of popularity .
Beckham's entourage have begun informal talks with James' people and, while there is still no firm offer on the table, it must be stressed that the Colombian will enter the final year of his contract in the summer and Perez will be reluctant to let him leave for free.
Former United star Beckham has been no slouch in setting up his new club so far, utilising the many friendships, alliances and knowledge of sporting models gained through spells at Real Madrid, AC Milan, Paris Saint-Germain and the LA Galaxy.
In fact, the ex-Madrid midfielder recently secured a friendly match with Real Valladolid after chatting with former team-mate Ronaldo 'Il Fenomeno' Nazario, who is the majority shareholder of the Liga club.
For James, meanwhile, it remains to be seen whether the attacking midfielder, who shot to fame for his performances at the 2014 World Cup, would be keen to give up on Europe during his peak years, with transfer links to Arsenal, United, Everton and Wolves all having sprung up in recent months.