Gareth Bale confirms move to Los Angeles FC

Cameron Smith

• Updated: 25 Jun 2022 16:57 CDT
• 3 min read

Gareth Bale has confirmed his move to Major League Soccer side Los Angeles FC with a video posted on his Instagram and Twitter accounts.

Bale will venture outside Europe for the first time in his career and sign for LAFC on a one-year upon his departure from Real Madrid.

The Welshman's contract at Real Madrid will expire on 30 June and he announced his exit from the club he joined from Tottenham in 2013 earlier this month,

There had been serious interest from Cardiff City in signing him this summer as the player looked for a destination in order to keep up his fitness ahead of this year's World Cup. He helped guide his nation Wales to the finals and is expected to play a key role as they end their 64-year absence from the tournament.

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Bale was born in Cardiff, and the club had hoped to convince him to join them in the Championship and make him their 10th signing of the summer after adding the likes of Ebou Adams from Forest Green Rovers and Jamilu Collins from SC Paderborn.

He was even spotted at Cardiff's training ground and is understood to have held talks with boss Steve Morison.

However, reports from the United States of America stated that he instead decided to snub his hometown club and instead move to LAFC and these have been officially confirmed by Bale, who has already added the MLS' club's social media handles to his profile on both Instagram and Twitter.

MLSsoccer.com's Tom Bogert confirmed Bale was finalising a deal with Los Angeles FC (LAFC), who sit top of the Supporters’ Shield table on 30 points, and that has now been completed.

Gareth Bale to LAFC

The club have already announced the signing of former Juventus star Giorgio Chiellini on a free transfer and have former Arsenal and Real Sociedad forward Carlos Vela in their ranks.

Bale, 32, spent nine illustrious years at the Santiago Bernabeu, although he re-joined Tottenham on a season-long loan deal during the 2020/21 campaign.

In total, he scored over 100 goals for Los Blancos, including three in Champions League finals. He will leave Real Madrid with 19 trophies to his name, including five triumphs in the Champions League.

Bale will sign a one-year deal at LAFC, although there will reportedly be the option for a further 18-months if he wishes.