Name: David Robert Joseph Beckham
Birth date: 2 May 1975
Place of birth: Leytonstone, London, England
Height: 183 cm
Weight: 74 kg
Nickname: Becks, DB7
Marital Status: Married to Victoria Beckham (Posh Spice)
Current club: Real Madrid
Number: 23
Position: Right midfield, centre midfield
Club history: 1993-1995 Manchester United (ENG), 1995 Preston North End (ENG), 1995-2003 Manchester United (ENG), Since 2003 Real Madrid (ESP)
David Beckham is one of the world's most recognised sportsmen. Years of success on the field at Manchester United combined with a high-profile lifestyle off it had ensured him a rare level of wealth and celebrity even before he became part of Real Madrid's galacticos project in 2003.
His talent with a football was evident from an early age: as a boy he won a Bobby Charlton Soccer Schools National Skills competition and before long he had signed up for his favourite team, Manchester United.
United manager Alex Ferguson had a great deal of confidence in the club's young players and in the 1994-95 season, he made the decision to let in youth team players instead of buying players from other clubs. Beckham became a regular player in the team and helped them to win the Premiership and FA Cup double that season, scoring the winner in the semi-final against Chelsea.
On 1 September 1996 he appeared for the England national football team , in a World Cup qualifying match against Moldova. He became an automatic first-choice player at United that season, helping them to retain their league championship, and was voted PFA Young Player of the Year by his peers.
Beckham had played in all of England's qualifying matches for the 1998 World Cup and travelled with the England squad to the finals in France. He didn't start in England's first two matches. He was picked for their third match against Colombia and scored from a long-range free kick in a 2:0 victory.
In the second round of that competition, he received a red card in England's match against Argentina. The match finished in a draw and England were eliminated in a penalty shootout. Many supporters and journalists blamed him for England's elimination and he became the target of criticism and abuse.
In the 1998-1999 season, he was part of the United team that won the treble: Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League.
In the Season 1999-2000 the relationship between Ferguson and Beckham began to deteriorate, possibly as a result of Beckham's fame and commitments away from football. Beckham had a good season for his club, though, and helped United to win the Premier League.
The abuse that Beckham was receiving from English supporters peaked during England's 3:2 defeat by Portugal in Euro 2000, when a group of England supporters taunted him throughout the match.
He was partially fit by the time of the 2002 World Cup and played in the first match against Sweden. Beckham scored the winning goal of the match against Argentina with a penalty, causing Argentina to fail to qualify for the playoff stage. England were eventually knocked out of the tournament by Brazil in the quarter-finals.
Following an injury early in the 2002-2003 season, Beckham was unable to regain his place in the Manchester United team, with Ole Gunnar Solskjer having replaced him on the right side of midfield. His relationship with his manager deteriorated further on 15 February 2003 when, in the changing room following a defeat to Arsenal, Alex Ferguson kicked a football boot which struck Beckham over the eye, causing a cut which required stitches. The incident led to a great deal of transfer speculation. Although the team had started the season badly, their results improved greatly from December onwards and they won the league. He was still a first-choice player for England.
Manchester United had been keen to sell Beckham to Barcelona but he refused to go there, instead signing a four-year contract with Real Madrid, worth a potential 35 million.
Beckham immediately became a favourite with the Real Madrid supporters, scoring five times in his first 16 matches, but the team, whose club president expected them to win either the Spanish league or the Champions League each season, was not performing well. He had further problems in April 2004, when the British tabloid News of the World carried claims by his former personal assistant Rebecca Loos that he and Loos had had an extramarital affair. Real Madrid finished the season in a disappointing fourth place, and were knocked out of the UEFA Champions League at the quarter-final stage.
Beckham played in all of England's matches at Euro 2004, but the tournament was a disappointment for him. He had a penalty saved in England's 2-1 defeat to France and missed another in a penalty shootout in the quarter final against Portugal. England lost the shootout and went out of the competition.
Beckham made more headlines on 9 October 2004 when he admitted intentionally fouling Ben Thatcher in an England match against Wales in order to get himself booked. Beckham was due to receive a one-match suspension for his next caution, and had picked up an injury which he knew would keep him out of England's next match, so he deliberately fouled Thatcher in order to serve his suspension in a match that he would have had to miss anyway. The Football Association asked Beckham for an explanation of his actions and he admitted that he had "made a mistake" and apologised.
In October 2005, Beckham's sending off against Austria made him the first England captain to be sent off and the first player to be sent off twice while playing for England. He captained England for the 50th time in a friendly international against Argentina the following month. He was sent off again shortly afterwards, this time in a league match for Real Madrid against Valencia CF. Having received a yellow card, he appeared to sarcastically applaud the referee and was given a second yellow card, causing an automatic dismissal. He was sent off for the third time that season on 3 December in a league match against Getafe.
Football or soccer as it's known in the USA delivered a major coup with the signing of David Beckham to the LA Galaxy on Jan 11, 2007. With a pay packet expected to be around $250 million over 5 years, Beckham has powered on to the 2nd highest paid sportsman of all time. Aside from the financial rewards, endorsement deals and obvious Hollywood ties, Beckham has vowed to change the face of soccer in America.
"He's a cultural icon," said Alexi Lalas, the president and GM of the Los Angeles Galaxy. "I think that the people that don't know a tremendous amount about soccer know who Beckham is, whether it's the way he looks or who he's married to or what he's done in international soccer. The fact is, he's transcended the sport."
So what does the rest of the footballing world make of this? Real Madrid, his current club has already expressed their displeasure at a supposed transfer behind their backs and will not pick him for first team duties again. His contract expires in the summer of 2007. So that is approximately half the season gone for him.
Soccer in America has seen the likes of Lothar Matthaeus, Roberto Donadoni and Hristo Stoitchkov. But they were well past their playing primes when they arrived, a pale shadow of the players who starred in World Cups. 3 decades before saw the likes of Pele, Franz Beckenbauer and Johan Cruyff. Easily 3 of the best players of all time. But again, well into their 30's when they crossed the Atlantic. Will Beckham herald the arrival of other superstars and banish the "retirement league" tag for the MLS? Until the MLS becomes viewed as a truly competitive leagure with huge television revenues, it will be difficult for this to happen. Any player worth his salt will always want to compete with the best, and this means regular Champions League participation or plying their trades in the top leagues. (Serie A, Premiership, La Liga)
On the whole, many view this as a stepback for Beckham and the end of his competitive footballing career. Beckham, to be fair, has not disputed this. He is instead using the opportunity to try and break the Big 3's (Football, Baseball and Basketball) dominance in the States. Whether he succeeds or not, we shall just have to wait and see.
In 1997, Beckham started dating the Spice Girl Victoria Adams and their relationship attracted a great deal of media interest. He married Adams at Luttrellstown Castle, Ireland on 4 July 1999. The Beckhams have three sons: Brooklyn Joseph Beckham (born 4 March 1999), Romeo James Beckham (1 September 2002) and Cruz David Beckham (20 February 2005).