It has been a tortuous eight-year process, but David Beckham's long awaited MLS franchise is finally close to joining the American league and playing some games.
Inter Miami will join the MLS as an expansion team for the 2020 season, with Beckham front and centre as one of the owners, and the public face of the team.
However, several issues still need to be resolved with Inter Miami - full name Club Internacional de Futbol Miami - before they can finally take to the field in a competitive fixture. Sportsmail takes a look at the story so far...
Ownership
As part of his deal to sign for LA Galaxy back in 2007, Beckham negotiated an option to own an MLS franchise for a discounted fee of $25million once his playing days finished.
The wheels were finally set in motion in 2013 when he confirmed he would set up shop in Florida, under the rather unwieldy working title of 'Miami Beckham United.' However, the name of Inter Miami was later settled upon - with the club in its current guise officially founded on January 28, 2018.
Beckham is one of six owners of Inter Miami - other investors are Simon Fuller, who formerly managed the Spice Girls (featuring Beckham's wife Victoria); Bolivian billionaire Marcelo Claure; Florida businessmen Jorge and Jose Mas; and Japanese banking chief executive Masayoshi Son.
Badge
Among the other working titles for the team were 'Miami Vice', 'Miami Current', and 'Miami Fusion', the former MLS franchise based in the city who folded in 2002.
However, Inter Miami was settled upon, and with the crest and team colours unveiled in September 2018. The team will play in eye catching black and pink.
The crest - designed around the art deco style which features heavily in Miami's architecture - features two interlocked herons, the giant birds being native to Florida. Around the edge is the club's full name and the roman numerals 'MMXX', meaning 2020, the year Inter will finally enter MLS.
Stadium plans
Perhaps the most drawn out aspect of Inter Miami's extended birth has been the debate over where they will play their home fixtures.
Beckham and the ownership group are aiming to build a 25,000-seat stadium at Miami Freedom Park, but planning obstacles and an expensive clear-up of toxic waste means a new ground will not be ready for the team's debut in 2020.
Instead, the Lockhart Stadium in Fort Lauderdale - which will be the home of the club's academy and a £45million training complex - will act as the side's temporary home.
The Lockhart Stadium, where Miami Fusion played for its fleeting five-year existence, is horribly rundown, covered in weeds, graffiti and rust - but Beckham visited the site recently and is confident of getting it into good shape in time for 2020.
Other sites previously considered included Dodge Island, Museum Park, Little Havana and Overtown, before Freedom Park was finally secured.
Players
Miami will put together their squad later this year, operating under MLS' strict salary cap which prevents the richest teams unbalancing the league by splashing their cash too readily.
However, teams are allowed to sign three 'designated players' - stars who they can pay wages beyond the cap in order to provide extra glamour to the league.
Beckham was the first man ever signed under the designated player rule - in fact, it was brought in for his benefit - and the former England captain is not thinking small when it comes to who he wants for Miami.
'Everyone has their wish list, everyone does, but if you look at the way Leo [Messi] and Cristiano [Ronaldo] are still playing, even at what you might think is the later stage of their careers, I don't see it ending for them,' said Beckham.
Messi will be 32 in 2020 - with a year left on his Barcelona contract - while Ronaldo will be 35. A final hurrah in the USA perhaps should not be ruled out for either.
Cost
Despite the 'cheap' franchise fee of $25m Beckham shelled out, the costs are ever growing for the former Manchester United and Real Madrid star.
In order to build the stadium on Freedom Park - which was public land - the club have to pay $20m in annual installments 30 years towards green spaces across the city.
There is also a need to clean up contaminated soil on the Freedom Park site, which could cost around $35m, while reports from Miami suggest annual rent could cost around $3.5m a year for the land.
In total, to build the complete complex of stadium, 750-room hotel, office, retail and commercial spaces, Inter Miami is already a $1billion club - and that's before you have to pay the players and find a manager.
This is something Beckham has been invested in for over a decade, however - and he and his partners appear to have nearly bottomless pockets.
What happens in 2020?
Inter Miami will be one of two clubs who join the MLS party in 2020, along with Nashville SC, taking the number of clubs in the league to 26.
They will play in the Eastern Conference, taking on opponents from Montreal to Philadelphia, New York to their soon to be state rivals, Orlando City.
Beckham's aim will no doubt be to emulate current MLS champions Atlanta United, who triumphed just two seasons after entering as an expansion franchise.