The most influential athletes of this century — Part 3: David Beckham

Introducing one of the most famous people on the planet is pretty difficult. You could have absolutely no idea about sports, but you’ll know who David Beckham is. Whether it’s numerous ad campaigns, his marriage to a Spice Girl or the fact he was England captain at multiple World Cups, David Beckham is a megastar.

Beckham was already a household name coming into the century, after being a key part of the treble-winning Manchester United team in the 1998–99 season. In this season, he was voted runner-up to Rivaldo for the European Footballer of the Year and FIFA World Player of the Year awards. Beckham’s career only went from strength to strength after this point.

Going into the new millennium, Beckham was one of the famous people on the planet. He had recovered his reputation amongst England fans to a point where he was eventually named captain, had some high profile sponsorship deals and was in a happy marriage with his first child having just arrived. The only issue for him was his relationship with his manager at Manchester United — Sir Alex Ferguson. Things had become fractured which eventually led to his departure to another one of the world’s biggest clubs — Real Madrid and he became their latest Galáctico.

After a relatively unsuccessful tenure for the Galácticos, he made a move where his celebrity only grew further to the United States, Major League Soccer and the showbiz town of Los Angeles to join the Galaxy where he literally made the league credible overnight. His club was able to gain millions of dollars in sponsorship because in the words of the LA Galaxy owners, AEG:

“Suddenly, we’re known as the company that owns the team that David Beckham is going to play for, so our world changed”

Beckham had spells back in Europe at some of the biggest clubs in the world. Whether it was his two loan spells with AC Milan or his title-winning stint at Paris Saint-Germain, Beckham still showed he had a bit about him.

All of this ignored his international career, where he became a talisman under Sven Goran Eriksson for England and arguably had his highest and lowest moments as a footballer in this century for his country. Speaking of his highest moments, I’ll continue with the structure that I’ve had in the previous pieces.

What was his peak?

Choosing Beckham’s peak this century was incredibly difficult. I think for Beckham, it’s important to have two distinct peaks as he’s been an absolute icon for 20 years. We’ll start with his footballing peak.

3 league titles while at Manchester United, La Liga champion in 2007 with Real Madrid, two MLS Cups with LA Galaxy and a Ligue 1 title with PSG were all great but I would argue his footballing peak this century came in his transition over to the MLS.

The announcement was made 6 months in advance of Beckham moving to the States, and Real Madrid were somewhat pissed off. Fabio Capello, the Real Madrid coach at the time, said he’d never play for the club again. Beckham was well known as a fantastic teammate at training, and his dedication was second-to-none. This dedication led to Capello going back on his word and Beckham was recalled a month later and went on to score a vital free-kick in a 2–1 win against Real Sociedad.

Was this his athletic peak? Absolutely not, but it showed Beckham’s character, determination and professionalism to the sport which had given him so much success. David Beckham became the person we know today primarily because of his footballing ability, and this is the best example of who he was on the pitch.

The second peak would be when he actually joined the Los Angeles Galaxy, as his popularity was never greater and more magnetic. The extravagant parade that they had for the man showed his immediate impact and it led to so many changes for the biggest sports market in the world where they finally took their premier soccer league seriously.

During Beckham’s time at the Galaxy, the MLS saw other major stars from Europe move over towards the end of their career including greats like Thierry Henry and it left a lasting legacy where others later moved including Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard and Wayne Rooney. This was his commercial peak, and has to be considered when speaking about Beckham as he is not just a footballer — he is a media magnet.

What moment makes you go “WOW” more than any other?

There is only one moment that can go in here.

David Beckham was every young England fan’s hero in the early 2000s. This goal sent England to the 2002 World Cup in Japan and South Korea. I mentioned earlier than Beckham was England’s talisman and this game was the best example of this.

I’ve rewatched this game hundreds of times (unsurprisingly, I did it again for this piece — if you’d rather some highlights, go here) and what is evident is no one wanted this more than Goldenballs himself. At times, it looked like 1 vs 11 and Beckham took us to the World Cup with the most important free-kick of his career. It was his finest performance in his 116 appearances for England and, for me, is why he belongs in this list from a sporting perspective.

Have there been any lowlights in this century?

Beckham’s biggest career lowlight came before this century, with his sending off against Argentina in the 1998 World Cup. The tabloids went on a tirade about how he had let down the country, but this piece is about this century.

The biggest scandal Beckham has been involved in was within his personal life. The now-defunct News of the World ran a story in 2004 that Beckham had an extra-marital affair with his former assistant Rebecca Loos. Beckham brushed this off as “ludicrous” but it didn’t stop Loos from being all over the news and eventually going into the world of reality TV and *ahem* pig relief.

From a footballing sense, Beckham was known for having somewhat of a temper on the pitch (as seen in 1998) where he became the first England captain to receive a red card and was sent off roughly 1 in 60 appearances throughout his career. This number doesn’t seem too bad but when you take into account a Premier League season is 38 games, it seems to indicate his discipline on the pitch could be called into question.

The other key lowlights for Beckham came in an England shirt. Despite his talismanic nature (see above), he had some awful moments, particularly from the penalty spot. With misses against France and in the penalty shootout against Portugal in Euro 2004, he was, unfortunately, the face of the failure of England’s so-called Golden Generation which was expected to win a tournament for the first time since 1966. The only real regret Beckham will have for his footballing career is the fact that he didn’t win a trophy for his country, particularly as it was clear how much playing for England meant to him every time he stepped out on the pitch.

What about outside of sport?

As I have mentioned throughout this piece, David Beckham’s name is arguably bigger than the sport of football. His marriage was under scrutiny almost immediately from the point that he and Victoria became public where they became known as “Posh and Becks”. Victoria, being part of the biggest girl band of the 90s, and Beckham, playing for the most successful club side in England, was exactly what the tabloids craved. They have carved out a successful promotional career where they are seen to be fashion icons and Beckham was called the first “metrosexual”.

David’s breathtaking looks have been the centrepiece of a number of fashion and advertising campaigns, as well as in more recent years going viral on social media for his look.

Beckham was a key part of the bid to bring the Olympics to London in 2012 and has been an ambassador in bringing football to more people in a new market, China. He has also been a key part of the Adidas brand for his whole career and continues to endorse many of their products (especially the Predator boots).

Beckham’s greatest work outside of football has certainly been his philanthropic work. He has supported UNICEF for over 20 years and is now a goodwill ambassador for the charity, where his focus is on helping children in danger. His work with children’s charities has been well documented, including where he gave up his wages when he played for Paris Saint-Germain to two children’s charities in France.

He has actively been involved with the charity Malaria No More and has been involved in campaigns for the charity in the UK, where he was seen alongside Andy Murray, and in the US where he was seen in advertising on Fox bringing greater awareness about the disease.

How will he be remembered?

David Beckham is a global icon, not much more needs to be said than that. Whether it was his football career, his numerous advertising campaigns or his philanthropic work, Beckham has become a huge brand who can be named himself alongside the likes of McDonald’s or Nike.

I will forever remember him as a talismanic captain for England, a man who was dedicated to his craft but also someone who is a great family man and has done a lot of good for the world as he understands his fortunate position.

David Beckham may end up being the most influential athlete of his generation, up there with the likes of Michael Jordan and Muhammad Ali. At the core of it was his fantastic footballing ability but his influence has gone far beyond that.

Part 4 will be here in a couple of days, where we’ll go from one man who cemented his star in Los Angeles to another who is furthering his in Los Angeles currently.