David Beckham wants to stay at Manchester Uni-ted. The club looks willing to sell him anyway.
Beckham, English soccer's highest profile player, has been at Old Trafford since he left school 13 years ago and says he doesn't want to leave.
But other European giants such as Spain's Barcelona are chasing him and even the world's richest soccer club may not want to turn down a bid of US$49 million.
Joan Laporta, a lawyer who is bidding to become president of Barcelona, said on Thursday he was hopeful of signing Beckham in time for next season if he gets the position. He said he had spoken to the English champion.
"They consider that our project is solid," he told a news conference in Barcelona. "They like it a lot. We are confident that things will go well," Laporta said. "At the moment I cannot say anything more but I trust that we can sign him."
So what are the pros and cons of Beckham staying or leaving?
For Manchester United, the situation and timing couldn't be more difficult.
Next month the club travels to the US to play a series of friendlies in Seattle, Los Angeles, Giants Stadium, New Jersey, and Philadelphia. The tour is aimed at enhancing Man U's profile in a country where soccer takes a back seat to other sports.
To do that without the England captain and its biggest star would take much of the impact away. Beckham is recovering from a broken wrist but is expected to be fit to play.
Then again, how many American sports fans have even heard of David Beckham?
Soccer remains way behind in the popularity stakes behind football, baseball, basketball and ice hockey. Some Americans may recognize Beckham only as the husband of a former Spice Girl.
According to business experts, if Beckham were to leave Manchester United, the club's value wouldn't go down.
Charles Trevail of the London-based brand consultancy Futurebrand, says that the brand value of Manchester United -- 25 percent of its enterprise value -- is the highest of any soccer club in Europe at US$272 million.
"I believe that Manchester United is a stronger brand than David Beckham," Trevail said. "If he left, the soccer might suffer on the field but the finance is pretty much intact.
"He will get the same big money sponsorship deals if he went to Spain. That is one of the attractions of Beckham. He brings the sponsors with him. He also brings a very loyal fan base in the Far East which can be of significant interest," he said.
"Manchester United have managed their brand extremely well. They were the first soccer club that went public here. They know they have shareholders who care a lot about not only the football but also the financial aspects as well," he said.
And while Beckham's own value wouldn't change much by a move to Barcelona, Real Madrid, AC Milan or Inter Milan, the club could afford to lose him.
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