Beckham, David

Beckham was born on May 2, 1975 in Leightonstone , London ^[28] , in the family of David Edward Alan "Ted" Beckham, a kitchen fitter (born in Edmonton in 1948) and Sandra Jorzhina West barber (born in 1949) ^[29] . As a child, Beckham played football regularly at Ridgeway Park in Chingford. His maternal grandfather was Jewish ^[30] , and David himself considers himself “half Jewish” ^[31] and acknowledges that religion has influenced him. In his book, Both Feet on the Ground, Both Feet on the Ground , he regularly attended the Christian church with his parents and two sisters, Joanna and Lynn, as a child. ^[32] In December 2009, Beckham’s maternal grandfather, Joseph West, died of lung cancer at the age of 83. ^[33]

David’s parents were Manchester United fans and regularly drove to Old Trafford from London for United’s home games. David inherited parental love for Manchester United. He attended the Bobby Charlton Football School in Manchester and took part in the Barcelona training camp, where young talents could be seen. As a child, he played for the local Ridgway Rovers team, which was coached by his father, Stuart Underwood, and Steve Kirby. In 1986, Beckham entered the field wearing the Manchester United mascot before a match against West Ham . As a teenager, he performed at the amateur level for the Leyton Orient , Norwich City , Tottenham Hotspur and Birmsdown Rovers clubs. When David turned 14, he signed a school contract with the Manchester United Football Academy .

Manchester United

Youth team and first calls to main team

David was one of the Manchester United players who won the Youth Cup in England in May 1992 . Beckham himself scored a goal in the second leg of the final match ^[34] against Crystal Palace . In the same year, he made his debut for the core of United, coming to replace the Football League Cup match against Brighton and Hove Albion , and soon after that he signed his first professional contract with the club. In 1993, United again reached the finals of the Youth Cup of England, but lost to Leeds in it. In the 1993/94 season, Beckham won the Manchester United double-over England Championship reserve teams.

On December 7, 1994, Beckham made his debut in the Champions League in the last group stage match against Galatasaray , which ended with United winning 4-0 (one of the goals was scored by Beckham). This victory, however, guaranteed United only third place in the group ( Barcelona took second place in goal difference).

Preston North End (rent)

In the 1994/95 season, David went on loan to Preston North End , where he scored two goals in five games, one of which was a direct kick from a corner ^[35] .

Return to Manchester United

In the spring of 1995, Beckham returned to Manchester United and made his debut for him in the Premier League on April 2, 1995 in a match against Leeds United .

In the 1996/1997 season, Beckham began with a goal from the center of the field in a game against Wimbledon at the Selhurst Park stadium. From this year, Beckham was invited to the national team, he made his debut in it on September 1 in a match with Moldova in Chisinau . Beckham firmly took place in the main part of his club, replacing Kanchelskis , who unexpectedly left for Everton , and immediately began to show excellent skill in scoring beautiful goals from the standards, as it was in the semi-finals of the League Cup against Chelsea . Beckham spent the season in one breath and according to a survey of football players was recognized as the best young player of the year. Including his efforts, “Manchester United” again became the champion and reached the semi-finals of the Champions League. But the 1997/1998 season was rather unsuccessful for Manchester United and Beckham, as the team lost to Arsenal for the champion title, flew out of the FA Cup and could not overcome the resistance of Monaco at the quarterfinal stage of the Champions League. Consolation for Beckham could be an invitation to the team at the 1998 World Cup .

In March 1999, Beckham becomes a father, his son's name is Brooklyn and Beckham's boots show his name after finishing the best season for Manchester United and Beckham himself, in which they won four trophies, becoming the best in the world: a champion title, England Cup and Cup Champions League , as well as the Intercontinental Cup . In July 1999, Beckham marries Victoria Adams , then better known as Posh ( Russian chic ), one of the vocalists of the pop group Spice Girls . The 1999/2000 season was also a success for Beckham, despite the constant press injections regarding his new hairstyle and discussions with Sir Alex Ferguson about raising fees. This year, Manchester United became the champion again, Beckham became the second best player both in Europe and in the world, in both cases Rivaldo beat him. Beckham was also second in the competition for BBC Sports athlete of the year, where he lost only to world boxing champion Lennox Lewis .

The best matches of the season 2000/2001 against Beckham fell on the England team, although he again won the Premier League with Manchester United, scoring in three games in a row at the beginning of the year.

Real Madrid

Shortly after moving to Real Madrid, Beckham refused to cooperate with his long-term agent Tony Stevens and took the place of his wife’s manager Simon Fuller ^[36] .

Englishman began his career in Spain with a victory in the Super Bowl over Mallorca , and in the second bout of the two-game series, held on August 27, 2003, Beckham opened and scored his goals for the new club, hitting the opponent's gate in the 73rd minute and setting the final score (3: 0). David did not need time to adapt to the new conditions: from the very first matches he became an organic element of the stars team. The debut goal for Real Madrid in the framework of the championship, he scored in the 3rd minute of the same debut match, and only in the first 16 matches of La Liga was marked with five goals scored. The season that began briskly ended, however, only in the fourth line in the example and the defeat in the final of the King’s Cup from Zaragoza (2: 3; Beckham opened the scoring in the match). The result of the “galacticos” in the Champions League did not meet expectations: “Real” flew out at the quarter-finals stage, cumulatively losing to the future finalist “Monaco” (4: 2 and 1: 3) due to the smaller number of goals scored away. The beginning of the 2004/05 season was marked by a series of coaching resignations: first, Carlos Queiroch was replaced by José Antonio Camacho , who only lasted three weeks in the team, then Mariano García Remon was replaced by Brazilian Wanderlyu Lushemburgu . An unpleasant story involving Beckham at the international level overlapped the fall crisis in the club: in the match against the Wales national team, Beckham was rudely attacked by defender Ben Thatcher and, realizing that he had suffered a serious injury, he avenged the Welshman, going for a conscious foul against him and deserving of it disqualification for the next match. The Englishman admitted about the intentional actions of his actions on October 12, 2004, the day after the match, causing a mixed reaction from the public: “I specifically went for that foul. I am sure that some people think that I simply wouldn’t have enough brains for such an act, but I have brains. I knew I was injured seriously, so I knocked Thatcher down. I've done this before. Understanding that I would not play for several weeks anyway, I decided to get a yellow card at the same time so that the disqualification fell on those matches in which I would not play anyway ” ^[37] . On October 13, Beckham apologized for his “erroneous” actions to the Football Association of England, which previously demanded explanations from the footballer, as well as to the fans and partners in the national team, and added: “I want to apologize personally to head coach Sven-Göran Eriksson . I know that, as captain of the national team, I must abide by the principles of fair play. ” ^[38] Soon he was also disqualified in the Spanish Championship, receiving a second yellow card for sarcastic applause for the main arbiter in the match against the current champion, “Valencia”; the disqualification, however, was lifted on appeal. By the end of the calendar year, Real Madrid managed to rise from the eighth place, occupied by the team at the end of September, to the second. Above the second line, the team in this season has not risen, and from the Cup of the King it was knocked out by “ Valladolid ” at the 1/8 final stage. At the same stage, Beckham and the company completed their performance in the Champions League, losing to Juventus (1: 0 and 0: 2). Juan Ramon Lopez Caro, who became the new head coach, managed to rally the team, achieve discipline and put an end to individualism; a young and little-known specialist, even outside Madrid, selected an effective scheme, 4-1-4-1 (4-2-2-2 was used under Wanderlei, 5-3-2 under Cayrosa), and Real finally started to show the game which was expected of him ^[39] . The results, however, were still disappointing. At the end of the 2005/06 season, Beckham was recognized as the best player of Real Madrid, again finishing second in the championship, taking off from the national cup in the semifinals, where creamy exchanged defeats with Zaragoza (1: 6 and 4: 0), and left The Champions League at the stage of the same 1/8 finals, this time losing to Arsenal (0: 1 and 0: 0). The apparent failure of Florentino Perez’s strategy meant that the club expected big changes in the coming off-season, and their first prerequisite was the resignation of the president himself back in January.

In the summer of 2006, the “galacticos” era ended: the club chose a new president, who was Ramon Calderon , and also broke up with the coaching staff and a number of leading footballers. David Beckham's not very successful game at the start of the 2006/07 season , in which the football player’s troubles in the England national team probably reflected the loss of the captain’s armband and even the place in the first team, turned into a conflict with new head coach Fabio Capello . As a result, the English midfielder went to the bench and, due to the fact that the contract expired in the summer of 2007 , and to conclude a new one because of the Italian coach on the coaching bridge is impractical, he was forced to search for a new club. A chain of reckless statements by the sports director of Real, the player himself and the head coach, led the situation beyond the point of no return. Predrag Miyatovic unknowingly acted as a provocateur who reported on January 10, 2007 that Beckham would leave the team after the end of the season ^[40] ; the next day, the footballer himself answered the club’s tactlessness with the news of signing a 5-year contract with the Los Angeles Galaxy , and on January 13, Fabio Capello drew a line that announced the end of the Englishman’s career in the Madrid club and transferred to reserve until the end of the season ^[41] . Developing the theme of the new, American contract Beckham, the head coach added: “He will not be able to maintain the necessary attitude, being a player of another team. Let him think what to do until the end of the season ” ^[42] . Later, Ramon Calderon spoke in an unfriendly manner about Beckham’s coming transition, noting that the decision not to extend the contract with the midfielder was “correct”, “and this is proved by the fact that he no longer needs anyone except the Americans,” and that Beckham " going to Hollywood, which means there will be more non-actors per one ” ^[43] . At the request of Real Madrid captain Raul González , speaking on behalf of all the players on the team, the club president apologized for his statements: “I apologize a thousand times to everyone I could inadvertently insult. But I want everyone to know: everything that I do, I do exclusively for the good of the club. As for Beckham, he is a top-level football player, distinguished by his exemplary behavior ” ^[44] . Meanwhile, the team entered a period of protracted crisis, and Fabio Capello, mercilessly criticized by the fans for planting defensive play style unusual for Real, was forced to return the disgraced Englishman to the foundation, effectively shifting the mission to save the season. Another important reason that drove Capello back down was the danger of losing control of the team, whose leaders — Guti , Raul, Iker Casillas, and Michel Salgado — supported Beckham throughout the conflict and ultimately demanded that the mentor return him to the team ^[45] . On February 10, 2007, in the first match after the return, Beckham hit the Sociedad gate, bringing an important victory to Madrid (2: 1). In March, David took part in the matches of the 1/8 finals of the Champions League against Bayern, which resulted in the Spanish club left the tournament (3: 2 and 1: 2), again, like in Beckham's first season for the main European club tournament in Madrid period, losing to goals on the road. On June 17, 2007, on the last day of the La Liga season, Beckham spent the last match in the Madrid club: beating Mallorca, Real Madrid beat Barcelona in additional indicators and won the long-awaited gold. The impressive four-month champion campaign of Real Madrid, led by Beckham, could not fail to impress the fans and bosses of the club, and with the end of the season, voices began to be heard in favor of concluding a new contract with a football player. However, the attempt of the club management to persuade Beckham to pursue a career in Madrid was not crowned with success ^[46] ; the attempt by Real Madrid to negotiate directly with Los Angeles failed ^[47] .

Los Angeles Galaxy

First Seasons

The arrival of David Beckham in the United States provoked an unprecedented increase in interest in football from local fans, which immediately resulted in a sharp increase in the number of season tickets sold for the 2008 season ^[48] . The American media launched an unprecedented advertising campaign aimed at promoting the brand of a football player and at the same time popularizing football in general. Introduced on the occasion of the transition midfielder in the "Los Angeles Galaxy" so-called. " Beckham 's rule ", which allows to remove up to two players from the salary ceiling established by the MLS, contributed to a qualitative leap in the development of American football and to the increase in its interest in the world. The contract with the new club entered into force on July 11, 2007; On July 13, in the presence of more than 5,000 fans and about 700 accredited journalists, Beckham was officially introduced as a player to LA Galaxy. On July 21, Beckham made his debut for the team in a friendly game against London's Chelsea (1: 0), broadcast live on the main ESPN channel and gathered in the stands of the Home Deepo Center among other celebrities such as Tom Cruise , Eva Longoria , Jennifer Love Hewitt , Alicia Silverstone and Arnold Schwarzenegger . Despite the presence in the game of famous football club in London, the main focus of American television was focused on David Beckham, who sat on the bench up to the 78th minute and was injured shortly after entering the field. Missing Galaxy for four matches, Beckham, nevertheless, was in the team's position throughout the recovery period, being present on the bench in street clothes during the matches. For security reasons, the Los Angeles footballers flew a charter flight for the next match in Toronto, which was previously forbidden by the league due to considerations of equal competition, and stayed at a five-star hotel (paid by the promoter from Toronto) instead of the modest hotels relied on by the MLS mandate ^[49] . The first official game for the California club has not fully recovered Beckham took place on August 9 at the Kennedy Stadium against DC United and gathered at that time a record number of fans in the capital club history (46,686) ^[50] . The semi-final match of the North American Super League against the same club, which took place on August 15, became a landmark for Beckham, for many reasons: for the first time he came out in the starting lineup of LA Galaxy and for the first time as his captain, and also scored his first goal, gave the first an assist and received the first yellow card in the American club ^[51] . August 29 in the finals of the Super League against the Mexican " Pachuki " Beckham injured his right knee and left the field ahead of schedule; having equalized the score in the 93rd minute, the Americans transferred the game to a penalty shootout, which they lost in the end. The survey showed that David had damaged the medial collateral ligament and the recovery process would take at least six weeks. On October 21, Beckham returned and took part in the decisive match for the playoff against Chicago Fire , in which Los Angeles was defeated, finishing the season in 5th place in the Western Conference and on the 11th in the aggregate MLS regular championship table. For half the season in the American club, even more shortened by injuries, Beckham took part in 8 matches (5 in the league), scored 1 goal and gave three assists (two in the league).

January and part of February 2008, Beckham spent in London, keeping fit in training as part of Arsenal ^[52] and preparing to take part in the national team's friendly matches, which at that time was headed by an old friend of the Englishman Fabio Capello, and then returned to Los Angeles Angeles for directly pre-season training. On April 3, he opened his scoring for Galaxy in the MLS, hitting the San Jose Earthways for the 9th minute of the match. On May 24, in the 4th minute of the match against the Kansas City Wizards , Beckham repeated his own achievement 12 years ago, scoring a goal from his own half of the field, in this case from a distance of 70 yards ^[53] . In general, the 2008 season turned out to be even more unfortunate for Galaxy than the 2007 season: this time the club finished the season on the 6th line in the Conference and on the 13th in the general table, again without getting into the playoffs. Nevertheless, 2008 can be added to the asset of a football player: he returned to the England national team and held several successful matches in it, which earned the trust of the head coach and even interest from European clubs. At the end of 2008, Beckham decided to return to Europe as an active footballer - first of all, to maintain the shape and status of a player in the main team. On October 30, 2008, the Milan football club announced the transfer on loan of David Beckham ^[54] scheduled for January 7, 2009 , while the footballer himself, stopping possible speculations, noted that returning to Europe does not mean an intention to leave the American club.

Between Milan and Los Angeles

The appearance of Beckham in Milan caused a mixed reaction from both the public and the players of this club, some of whom suggested that this is nothing more than a marketing course of leadership ^[55] . In the new team, David chose the 32nd number previously used by Christian Vieri ; Numbers 7 and 23 were occupied, respectively, by Alexandre Pato and team captain Massimo Ambrosini . After passing the medical examination, Beckham said that he could continue his playing career for at least another five years, that is, until he reached 38 years old ^[56] . Beckham made his Milan debut on January 11, 2009, and on January 25 in the third match for the club, he scored his first goal in Serie A , hitting the Bologna gate. Although the footballer did not question the return to Los Angeles in March, it was not possible to avoid rumors about the possibility of staying longer in Italy for longer than the planned period, or even concluding a full-fledged contract with Milan. This was facilitated by the impressive game of Beckham, who scored two goals in the first four meetings, successfully fit into the team scheme and immediately stuck in the base; the Italian press spread information about Milan’s intention to buy out a football player’s transfer from LA Galaxy. In the end, speculation found first-hand confirmation: on February 4, Beckham confirmed that he was ready to conclude a permanent contract with the Italian club for the sake of pursuing a career in the national team, but the subsequent negotiations between Milan and the Americans did not lead to anything ^[57] . However, the Los Angeles Galaxy agreed to extend the lease term to mid-July, as reported by the Los Angeles Times on March 2 ^[58] and later confirmed by Beckham, who called the deal to extend his lease “unique” ^[59] . In total, in the 2008/09 season, Beckham spent 20 matches for the Italian club, including 18 in the championship, that is just under 50% of their total number.

In Los Angeles, Beckham was waiting for a “warm” meeting: fans, disappointed that Beckham had missed half of the season, regularly showed dislike towards the Englishman. At the games, posters with the words “Come back home, swindler!” Or “Part-time player” ^[60] flashed across Beckham’s faces. Also, the merit of the recent reluctance by the American public of her recent idol belonged to another LA Galaxy footballer, Landon Donovan , because of excerpts published in early July 2009 from The Beckham Experiment , which is being published for his authorship, in which the attacker exposed his teammate pretty harsh criticism. The published excerpts, in particular, contained the following: “Suppose Beckham wants to stay here for another three years. But I'm not going to play with him yet so much time. It's horrible. <...> Suppose he is not a leader. Suppose he is not the captain. But at least he has to rip his ass every day. But this does not happen; he doesn't care about the team. The person who gets the most in the league must match their status. Train, show yourself. It seems that David reads all this as a joke. ” ^[61] Donovan gave the club an ultimatum, saying that he would leave the team, "if Beckham does not decide his future in the very near future." July 12, the day before his return from Italy, Beckham commented on the situation: “Donovan behaved unprofessionally. When I return to Los Angeles, I’ll talk to him face to face and we’ll find out. For seventeen years I played with great football players in great clubs, and no one has ever accused me of lack of professionalism ” ^[62] . On July 15, American media reported on the reconciliation of football players, but the impact of Donovan’s revelations on fans turned out to be so great that they soon launched a real campaign against Beckham; a scandalous statement was made by the head of the Galaxy fan club, who called the Englishman “an idol for teenagers and housewives,” but “Judah for real fans,” adding that for them, “true fans,” Beckham was “dead” ^[63] . The 2009 season was, however, the most successful for Beckham since his move to the USA: with the return of David, who gained in Seri A, who became a key player in the team, although he lost to Landon Donovan in captain's armband, LA Galaxy rose from third in the first place in the championship of the Western Conference and for the first time in several seasons was ready to join the fight for the main trophy - the MLS Cup . Having won the West for the first time, Beckham led the team to the main final of the year, simultaneously winning the previous MLS Cup final playoffs of the Western Conference, where Houston Dynamo was defeated on October 20, 2009 (2: 0). In the last match of the season, held on November 22, Los Angeles lost to Salt Lake in a penalty shootout (4: 5); Beckham came to the point first and realized his strike. At the end of November, it was confirmed that, despite the danger of grabbing another portion of misunderstanding from the side of Californian fans, Beckham would again go on loan to Milan, and join the Italian team, as last time, in early January.

On January 6, 2010, David Beckham, re-debuting for Milan, took part in a devastating victory over Genoa (5: 2), spending 75 minutes on the field. On February 16, 2010, Beckham played against Manchester United for the first time - this happened in the first match of the 1/8 finals of the Champions League at San Siro. In the British victory (3: 2), Beckham spent 72 minutes on the field and was replaced by Clarence Seedorf . The return match at Old Trafford (0: 4) was remembered for the symbolic joining of Beckham to the protest of United fans against the owner of the club, Malcolm Glazer ; at least, this is how the behavior of the ex-football player who put on the green-gold scarf, a symbol of the anti-Glazer movement, was considered. Later, however, Beckham avoided a direct question about this and said that “protests are not his business” ^[64] . In the next Serie A match against Chievo , Beckham suffered an injury to his left Achilles tendon, which resulted in missing the rest of the Italian championship season, the 2010 World Cup , which took part in the MLS season. The footballer was successfully operated on March 15 in Finland and missed a total of five months.

The first match after recovery, Beckham held September 11, 2010, coming on as a substitute in the 70th minute of the match against Columbus Crew (3: 1). On October 4, Beckham's first goal scored from a penalty kick brought Los Angeles a win over Chivas USA (2: 1). David’s other winning goal, which hit the Dallas goal (2: 1), provided LA Galaxy with a second consecutive victory in the regular Western Conference championship and at the same time, the first Supporters' Shield award since 2002, awarded to the team that won first place in the consolidated table of both conferences. However, the same Dallas became an insurmountable obstacle to the Galaxy in the MLS Cup: David Beckham's team lost 0: 3 in the final of the Conference on November 14; Englishman marked with a yellow card in the 73rd minute.

Seasons 2011 and 2012

On the eve of the 2011 season, Beckham trained at Tottenham ^[65] and even came close to transferring to this club on loan ^[66] , but Galaxy obstructed the deal.David scored his first goal in the 2011 season on May 15, hitting the gates to Sporting Kansas City from a penalty kick from a distance of 30 yards. On July 9, Beckham scored a goal from the corner for the second time in his career, bringing his team to victory over Chicago Fire (2: 1); before that, he managed to hit the opponent's gate in a similar way in 1995, during the period on loan for Preston North End. On August 16, Beckham made his debut in the CONCACAF Champions League in a home game against Motagua (2: 0), for the first time after the reorganization of the tournament (in the North American season 2010/11) , важнейшую, начальную для клуба часть которого Бекхэм пропустил из-за травмы, Los Galácticos были выбиты в квалификационном раунде от « Пуэрто-Рико Айлендерс »). Сыграв во всех матчах своей команды на групповой стадии главного клубного соревнования Северной Америки и, обойдя мексиканскую « Морелию » по лучшей разнице мячей, заняв первое место в группе, Бекхэм содействовал историческому для клуба завоеванию путёвки в плей-офф.

В своём лучшем сезоне MLS Бекхэм с 15 голевыми передачами стал вторым ассистентом регулярного чемпионата и лучшим с 3 голевыми передачами в турнире плей-офф. В третий раз подряд с уверенным преимуществом выиграна Западная Конференция, во второй — совокупный чемпионат обеих конференций; по количеству набранных очков показан второй результат в истории MLS. В полуфинале плей-офф Конференции был обыгран усиленный Тьерри Анри « Нью-Йорк Ред Буллз » (1:0 и 2:1), в финале — повержен «Реал Солт-Лейк» (3:1); на 58-й минуте Бекхэм отметился голевой передачей нападающему Майку Маги ^[67] . 21 ноября 2011 года Дэвид Бекхэм в составе «Лос-Анджелес Гэлакси» впервые стал обладателем главного трофея высшего дивизиона США и Канады — Кубка MLS . В главном матче года со счётом 1:0 (гол забил Лэндон Донован) на домашнем стадионе ^[68] клуба из Лос-Анджелеса был обыгран «Хьюстон Динамо». Когда 31 декабря 2011 года контракт Бекхэма «ЛА Гэлакси» истёк, он был уже признанной легендой клуба и любимцем болельщиков. Благоприятная обстановка, сложившаяся вокруг англичанина по ходу сезона 2011, в котором он проявил свои лучшие игровые качества и по-настоящему напомнил о себе образца лучших времён, во многом способствовала решению остаться в Калифорнии ещё на один сезон. Однако трансферные страсти вокруг нестареющей суперзвезды зимой 2011/12 разгорелись нешуточные: в борьбу за Бекхэма включились французский « ПСЖ » ^[69] , английские «Тоттенхэм» и « Куинз Парк Рейнджерс », мексиканская « Тихуана » ^[70] , а также «Милан» ^[71] . Свен-Ёран Эрикссон предложил Дэвиду должность играющего тренера в « Лестер Сити » ^[72] . Интерес большого количества европейских клубов Бекхэма, по его признанию, «удивил», ведь он, опять же по его словам, находится «в довольно преклонном для большого спорта возрасте» ^[73] .

The variant with Paris was considered the most probable, in favor of which the firm confidence of the club leaders, indicated by them in various interviews, spoke. In particular, the sports director of PSG, Leonardo Araujo, in early November 2011, said: “I coached David in Milan and we had good relations. It is difficult to call him an ordinary footballer, but every day he trains and plays like a child. Our doors are open for him. He is more than a footballer. He is a brand, a pop star. ” ^[74] But closer to 2012, the Parisians lost hope for the transfer of Beckham, a number of media called the primary task of the club ^[75] ; On January 3, in an interview with the sports edition of L'Equipe, Leonardo clarified the situation with the transition of a football player: “It's over. David really wanted to play for our team, but the decisive role was played by the desire of all members of his family to stay in Los Angeles. And the family comes first for him. ” ^{[76] [77]} . On January 18, 2012, Beckham signed a new two-year contract with the Los Angeles Galaxy, and at the same time explained his decision: "My family is incredibly happy in America, and we intend to stretch this pleasure for many more years" ^[78] . The new contract specifically stipulated the clause on Beckham’s right to leave the club’s location for possible participation in the Olympics ^[79] .

The 2012 football season started for Beckham on March 7 from the guest match of the 1/4 finals of the CONCACAF Champions League against Toronto . The match at the main Canadian stadium in an unfriendly for American guests match was marked by several incidents, including with the participation of David Beckham, thrown at the time of the corner with festive ribbons and beer cans ^[80] , and ended with a score of 2: 2, and “LA Galaxy "managed to escape thanks to a goal Donovan only in the last minute. In the second leg, held on March 14, Los Angeles lost to Canadians with a score of 1: 2 and left the tournament. It was not the best way to start the season at MLS: Californians regularly lost points and by the summer were at the bottom of the conference standings. It is not at the right time that the game crisis in the club has seriously lowered Beckham's chances to get a call to the UK Olympic team , even despite the utmost dedication and fighting spirit demonstrated by the player himself from match to match. Beautiful Beckham goals - the best thing that happened with the lack of proper results happened to Galaxy in the first half of the 2012 season. On April 15, in a home game against Portland Timbers , with a stunning long-range strike from outside the penalty area, David scored a goal most scoring account in 2012. ^[81] On May 13, 2012, in an away match against Montreal Beckham, scoring a goal from the free kick in the 62nd minute, made the score 1: 1 and allowed his club to escape from defeat ^[82] . During the match against San Jose Earthquakes, held on July 6, the day after the official announcement of the final application of the UK team, to which Beckham, to his deepest disappointment, did not hit, there was a scandalous episode, the main character of which was the English midfielder. Suspecting Sam Cronin 's San Jose player in feigning injury, Beckham made a side shot, sending the ball from 25 meters exactly to the head of a football player who was sitting on the lawn in the thick of his teammates ^[83] . Next, a scuffle broke out between Beckham, who was awarded a yellow card for “unsportsmanlike behavior,” and San Jose football players, led by Kronin, who had recovered sharply. Already after the end of the game (“LA Galaxy” lost 3: 4), Beckham was additionally sanctioned as a one-match disqualification ^[84] . July 15, returning to the football field after the end of the disqualification, Beckham scored a double in the gates of Portland (5: 3) ^[85] . The third straight goal in his career from a corner, scored by David Beckham on August 23 at the gate of the Salvadoran club “ Isidro Metapan ” ^[86] , was the first and only one for the midfielder in the North American Champions League. Also in the match against Isidro, Beckham scored a goal assist to Robbie Keane . Following the results of the “Los Angeles Galaxy” group tournament, the second season in a row from the first place, won by 6 points over the closest pursuer, went into the playoffs.

The failed start of the season nearly cost the current champion of the league early resignation: taking 4th place in the Western Conference, the last but one in the series allowing the season to continue the playoff series, and 8th place in the summary table, Los Angeles managed to save the season, although it lengthened its way into the MLS Cup qualifying round. Having won in the selection over Vancouver Whitecaps (2: 1), then he coped with San Jose Earthways (0: 1 and 3: 1) in the semi-finals of the Conference and beat Seattle Saunders in the final (3: 0 and 1 : 2), LA Galaxy went into the decisive match for the MLS Cup for the second season in a row, where again Houston Dynamo became its rival. It is indicative that both finalists could not get directly to the semi-final of the Conference and were forced to overcome the qualifying round. In the pivot table of the regular championship, the participants of the main match of the season settled one after another: in 8th and 9th places; thanks to a higher position relative to the rival, “Los Angeles” again won the right to play in the MLS Cup in the home arena. On November 19, 2012, Beckham said that playing in the final fight on December 1, 2012 will be his last game for the Los Angeles Galaxy ^[87] .

The place where David was going to continue his career, neither he nor his representatives have not named. The Australian newspaper The Australian called a possible place to continue the career of an Englishman from a group of local clubs ^[88] , the same information was confirmed by Frans Press ^[89] , but representatives of the midfielder denied this information ^[90] . The BBC reported that the French club Paris Saint-Germain became interested in Beckham ^[91] . PSG's head coach, Carlo Ancelotti, said that he didn’t know anything about David’s transition ^[92] .

Beckham further stated that he would decide to move to a new club before the end of the year, and also that he would probably return to MLS as one of the owners ^[93] (the initial contract with the league allows him to become the owner of the new MLS club for a lower fixed price of 25 million dollars ^[94] ). On February 5, 2014, the league announced that David Beckham was using the option of his contract with MLS, which allows him to acquire a new league franchise at a lower price ^[95] . The new club will be based in Miami and will begin performing in the MLS in 2020 ^[96] .

Paris Saint-Germain

On January 31, 2013, Beckham signed a five-month contract with Paris Saint-Germain ^{[97] [98] [99]} . David said he would transfer his salary to a local children's charity ^{[100] [101] [102]} . On February 24, Beckham made his debut for a new club in a match with Marcel , replacing him at 76 minutes of the match. The meeting ended with the victory of the “Parisians” with a score of 2: 0 ^[103] . In the "Parisians" David became the champion of France ^{[104] [105] [106] [107]} . Having won this title, Beckham became the first Englishman to win the championships of four countries. In addition to the French championship, the footballers were conquered by the Championship of England ( Manchester United ), Spain ( Real Madrid ) and MLS ( Los Angeles Galaxy ) ^[108] .

On May 16, Beckham announced his retirement from professional football at the end of the current season ^{[109] [110] [111] [112] [113] [114]} , stating:

David Beckham's debut for the national team of England took place on September 1, 1996, in the qualifying match of the 1998 World Championship against the Moldavian national team. The 1998 World Cup was a big emotional surge for Beckham. He missed the first two matches of the group stage, but in the last one he scored the decisive goal with a penalty kick from the Colombian national team , and became a national hero and the country's main hope in the 1/8 final against Argentina . In the match against Argentina, Beckham scored an assist on Michael Owen , who, beating the entire Argentinian defense with the ball, scored the most beautiful goal of the world championship. However, in the 47th minute, Beckham was sent off the field for striking the team captain Diego Simeone , who provoked him repeatedly during the match. This removal almost deprived the team of chances to win and eventually the British lost to the Argentines in the penalty shootout. Almost immediately after the match, Beckham in the eyes of the press and fans from the main hope turned into an anti-hero and the main reason for the disastrous performance of the national team in the championship.

At Euro 2000, Beckham already in the first match with the Portuguese gave two assists in the first half, and England led 2: 0, but in the end could not hold even a draw, losing 2: 3. In the next principal match with the Germans, Beckham again gave the most magnificent goal assist from a penalty kick to Alan Shearer and England won 1: 0, but then the British lost to Romania 2: 3 and flew out of the championship.

Beckham became the captain of the national team in a friendly match against Italy , retained the captain's armband and in the match with Spain , and then in the qualifying matches of the 2002 World Cup with Albania and Finland , the latter he scored a very important goal at Anfield Road in Liverpool. He distinguished himself at home, at Old Trafford, when he scored the decisive goal for the national team at the gates of the Greek national team in October 2001, which allowed the England team to retain their first place and get to Japan and South Korea. But a month before the start of the World Cup, Argentine Ducher from Deportivo La Coruna at Old Trafford breaks Beckham’s left leg, making an unreasonably tough tackle. The whole nation, fans of Beckham and England all over the world were waiting for Beckham to return to the ranks before the start of the world championship. And he recovered, although as the doctors claimed not to the end, he helped the team first to play a 1: 1 draw with a very strong Swedish team, making an assist from the corner, then scored a penalty kick against Argentina, who was considered one of the main favorites of the championship. A draw in the last match with Nigeria led 0-0 to the national team in the next round, where the British, led by Beckham, who made two assists, defeated the Danes 3-0 and hit the quarterfinals of the Brazilian national team. Where England was stopped by the rising football superstar Ronaldinho, who scored a goal against Simena and gave an assist to Rivaldo. But, despite the defeat, the houses of the British were met as heroes.

In the first match of the European Championship 2004, the British played with the French team. In the first half, after filing Beckham, Frank Lampard opened the score, at the beginning of the second half, the British had an advantage and earned a penalty, but Beckham struck almost in the center of the goal, and Barthez was able to parry the blow. Everything went to victory for the England team, but Zidane's two goals (from the penalty and from the penalty spot) brought victory to the French 2: 1 in added time. After that, the British confidently beat the Swiss 3: 0 and the Croats 4: 2 and reached the quarterfinals of the Portuguese national team - the hosts of the tournament. 120 minutes of the match did not bring victory to any of the teams - 2: 2. In the penalty shoot-out series, the British beat Beckham first and shot far above the gate, as a result the Portuguese won.

In the opening match of the World Cup 2006, the British met with the Paraguayans. After filing Beckham with a penalty kick, the Paraguayans defender and their captain Gamarra cut the ball into their own net, which brought the British victory 1: 0. In the second match with Trinidad and Tobago, Beckham made an assist on Crouch, in the end this goal was victorious, England won 2: 0. In the last match the English broke up with the Swedes 2: 2. In the 1/8 final match, the forefathers of football played with the Ecuador national team. At the 60th minute, the British earned a free-kick near the goal and Beckham sent the ball to the lower left corner of the goal with his signature cutter kick, the goalkeeper touched the ball with his fingers, but it did not help, England won 1: 0. In the quarterfinals, the British, like two years ago at Euro 2004, were confronted by the Portuguese team. And again, the main and extra time ended in a 0-0 draw, and the Portuguese won the penalty shootout again.

As a result of the injury sustained in the Milan squad in the match against Chievo, Beckham was unable to take part in the 2010 World Cup . However, he came to South Africa with the team at the personal invitation of Fabio Capello as an assistant. Much later, David talked about this experience: “I didn’t like it at all. I don’t know how coaches enjoy what they do. I love working with children and training them, but the position of a coach has never interested me ” ^[119] . In early August 2010, Fabio Capello made an unexpected statement that he did not intend to call Beckham to the national team any longer: “I want to thank David for his help at the World Cup, but that's all; he is probably too old. ” ^[120] The coach also announced that the midfielder will be able to spend the last game and say goodbye to the fans, but David refused to hold a farewell match for the national team. David Beckham said he was not going to leave the ranks of the national team, he wants to participate in the qualifying games for the 2012 European Championship and even at the championship itself. On November 15, 2011 , answering the question whether Beckham has a chance to join the national team for Euro 2012, Capello said: “No. I think it will be included only in the Olympic team. But I still have time to make a decision. ”

Goals for the national team

UK Olympic Team

David Beckham has been actively involved in the fate of the UK Olympic team since its re-establishment in June 2011 . And initially it was about the appointment of Beckham as the head coach of the Olympic team, but he refused, considering that he would be more useful to her as a player, and publicly spoke in favor of the nominee Stuart Pearce ^[121] . In the future, David has repeatedly voiced a desire to play at the home Olympics for the unified team, but his position suddenly shaken after the approval in October 2011 of the head coach Stuart Pearce. Despite Beckham’s assistance in his assignment, Pierce was skeptical of Olympic footballer enthusiasm ^[122] . On January 20, 2012, Beckham said that he hoped to become the captain of the UK national team at the 2012 Games ^[123] . On April 18, 2012, David Beckham entered the extended list of players who can play at the Olympic tournament in London ^[124] , but did not make it to the final bid, announced on June 28 ^[125] . The decision of the head coach provoked a wide public response, and also caused confusion among the organizing committee of the Olympic Games and the British Olympic Association ^[126] . Famous football players and coaches, public figures, musicians spoke on this topic. In particular, Harry Redknapp noted that “... with his decision, Stuart Pearce grieved a lot of top representatives. They would like to see Becks in the team. I am also surprised and I regret that he is not in the team ” ^[127] . Sir Paul McCartney did not hide his anger and even called Stuart Pearce an "idiot": "Beckham must be the first player in the national team for his contribution to football and services in getting the London Olympics. But one idiot thinks otherwise. I am a little sorry for those three players who are over 23 years old, because we will look at them and say: Beckham should be in your place ” ^[128] . “When I learned that Beckham would not go to the Olympics, he was a little happy and slightly disappointed. I am glad because he will not play against us, and our task will be less difficult. But I was upset because Beckham was a great player, so I wanted to play against him one day. I could then tell the children about it, ” ^[129] , said Neymar, the Brazilian striker. The decision of the coach of the UK national team was disappointed by Jose Mourinho : “There is something that I cannot understand. The fact that the 2012 Olympic Games are held in London is due to David Beckham. He was the most representative figure of this application. And I cannot understand why he does not play ” ^[130] . According to The Sun columnist Stephen Howard, the decision not to include Beckham in the Olympic bid is “mean and wrong” and “looks like spitting in the face of the moods of the whole nation” ^[131] ; The Telegraph correspondent Henry Winter described Pierce’s decision as “extremely strange”: “Stuart Pearce decided not to include in the application one of the very few people in the UK who is really concerned about the Olympic football tournament” ^[132] . Among others publicly supported by David Beckham, Prince William .

The prevailing view: the coach of the UK national team underestimated national and sporting moods, rejecting David Beckham ^[133] . The footballer himself expressed regret over what had happened, and added: “Well, then I will become the most ardent fan of this team” ^[134] . Beckham also expressed the hope that "the UK will win the Olympic football tournament" ^[135] .

The national team of Great Britain ingloriously finished the home tournament, having been left without medals.

It is worth adding that David Beckham was an active participant in the promotion of the London Olympic bid and participated in the ritual of symbolic transfer of the Olympic flag to the British capital at the closing ceremony of the Olympic Games in Beijing . “Beckham supported the idea of ​​holding the Games in London from the very beginning, and in many respects thanks to him, the IOC chose our city. He participated in laying the stone at the London Olympic Park, ”says William Morris, member of the 2012 Games Organizing Committee ^[136] . On July 28, 2012, Beckham took part in the opening ceremony of the Olympiad: he moved a torch along the Thames and handed it to the owner of five gold Olympic medals in rowing Steve Redgrave ^[137] .

Team

  Manchester United

• Champion of the English Premier League ( 6 ): 1995/1996 , 1996/1997 , 1998/1999 , 1999/2000 , 2000/2001 , 2002/2003
• Winner of the FA Cup ( 2 ): 1996 , 1999
• UEFA Champions League Winner: 1999
• Intercontinental Cup Winner: 1999
• Winner of the Supercup of England ( 2 ): 1996 , 1997
• England champion among reserve teams : 1993/94
• Youth Cup Winner : 1992
• Football League Cup finalist : 2002/03
• UEFA Super Cup Finalist: 1999

Total: 14 trophies

  RealMadrid

• Champion of Spain : 2006/07
• Winner of the Spanish Super Cup : 2003
• Spanish Cup finalist: 2003/04

Total: 2 trophies

  Los angeles galaxy

• MLS Champion ( 2 ): 2011 , 2012
• Winner of Supporters' Shield MLS ( 2 ): 2010, 2011
• Winner of the regular season MLS Western Conference ( 3 ): 2009, 2010, 2011
• MLS Cup Finalist: 2009
• Finalist of the North American Super League : 2007
• Bronze medalist of the Pan-Pacific Championship : 2008

Total: 4 trophies

  Paris Saint-Germain

• Champion of France : 2012/13

Personal

• PFA Young Player of the Year : 1996/1997
• Matt Busby Prize for Young Player of the Year: 1996/1997
• Included in the symbolic world team of 2001 and 2003
• The most valuable player in the European season of 1999 (according to UEFA)
• The best midfielder of the 1999 European season (according to UEFA)
• UEFA club player of the year : 1999
• Winner of the silver ball (the second best football player in Europe): 1999
• Winner of the bronze ball (the third best football player in Europe): 2003
• The second best football player of the world in 1999 and 2001 (winner of silver balls)
• Athlete of the year according to the BBC version: 2001
• Included in the FIFA 100 list ^[138]
• ESPN award to the best male footballer: 2004 ^[139]
• ESPN Award to Best MLS Player: 2008 ^[139]
• Included in English Football Hall of Fame : 2008
• Winner of the BBC award for achievements in the field of sports: 2010 ^[140]
• Winner of the MLS Awards in the nomination "Return of the Year": 2011
• ESPN Award to Best MLS Player: 2012

Orders and special awards

• Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE): 2003
• UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador : since 2005
• "The Greatest Ambassador of Britain" - included in the list of 100 great Britons ^[141]
• Ranked 15th in the Forbes list of 100 celebrities : 2007 ^[142]
• Ranked first in the list of 40 most influential people in the UK to 40 years according to the magazine " Arena " ^[143] : 2007
• Included in the Time 100 list according to Time Magazine: 2008 ^[144]

On February 5, 2014, MLS announced that David Beckham was using the option of his league contract signed in 2007, which allowed him to acquire a new league franchise at a lower price of $ 25 million ^[95] . The new club will be based in Miami and will begin performing in the MLS in 2020. The business partners of Beckham are Bolivian billionaire Marcelo Klaure, British producer Simon Fuller , Miami entrepreneurs Jorge and Jose Mas and Japanese billionaire Masayoshi Son ^{[95] [96] [149]} . NBA star LeBron James stated that he could also become a potential partner ^[150] . On September 5, 2018, the name Inter - Miami and the club logo were officially presented ^[151] .

He is married to the former soloist of the Spice Girls group, Victoria Beckham (nee Adams). He has three sons: Brooklyn Joseph (1999), Romeo James (2002) and Cruz David (2005). Harper Seven's daughter was born on July 10, 2011 ^[152] .

Beckham has about 17 tattoos on his body. These are the names of his sons (Brooklyn, Cruz and Romeo), a reproduction of the icon of Mathieu Brooks "The Man of Suffering" depicting Jesus on the cross, a portrait of Victoria Beckham on his forearm, a winged cross on his neck, and his wife's name in Indian letters and roses for the 10th anniversary their weddings. After the birth of his daughter Harper Seven, he made a tattoo on his neck with her name. Also, the last Beckham tattoo was made on the left hand, it depicts the word “Love” in translation - love and swallow ^[153] .

• George Best ’s statement about David Beckham is well-known, which has become winged: “He cannot beat with his left, cannot play with his head, cannot take the ball and scores very little. But otherwise he is a great guy. ” ^[154]
• Beckham about retirement: “To be honest, when I think about retirement, then I imagine it quite clearly. It will be in Brazil at the 2014 World Cup, in the final of which I will score a goal for my team, which will bring her the title of the best team in the world. Of course, by that time I will already be 39 years old, but this is not so scary ” ^[155] .
• In addition to football, David Beckham is actively shooting commercials and various fashion magazines. David Beckham also produces his own perfumes and clothing line.
• In January 2007, Beckham, in the guise of Prince Phillip from the Sleeping Beauty tale, took part in an advertising photo shoot for the Walt Disney film studio. “I have loved Disney cartoons since childhood, and I am very glad that I became their part. My sons are also fond of Disney cartoons, like all children in the world. I am proud to be one of the cartoon characters, ”said the footballer ^[156] .
• In early 2012, Beckham signed a contract with the youth brand H & M. In addition to advertising, the famous midfielder offered his brand of underwear to the brand. David Beckham celebrated the international launch of the David Beckham Bodywear for H & M collection in London on February 1, while his contract colleague rested in Israel ^{[157] [158]} . Starred in advertising Samsung Galaxy Note ^[159] .
• In the British film director Guy Richie ’s film “The Agents of A.N.K.L. ” (2015), Beckham played the role of cameo ^[160] . In 2017, Richie's next film, The Sword of King Arthur, was released, in which Beckham played the episodic role of the Knight Trigger ^[161] .
• Due to the abundance of tattoos in his arms, Beckham almost always plays in long-sleeved T-shirts.
• Elton John is the godfather of two of his sons - Brooklyn and Romeo ^[162] .
• Beckham was officially invited to the wedding of the British Prince William and Catherine Middleton , held April 29, 2011 ^[163] .
• On May 24, 2011, David Beckham played a friendly match at Manchester United against Juventus football club. This game was held on the occasion of the completion of the football career of MU defender - Gary Neville ^[164] .
• In early 2012, an amusing incident occurred with Beckham: he was removed from the stadium of one of the Los Angeles football academies, where he arrived to watch the game of his son Romeo. Arriving at the stadium earlier than it should, he was a witness to an overly strict refereeing of a match with 7-year-olds: the appointment of a seemingly controversial penalty and the removal of the frustrated little boy outraged Beckham. The Englishman addressed the judge with the words: “Hey, he is only seven years old, you cannot remove him!”, To which the referee showed the red to David himself ^[165] .
• On May 15, 2012, Beckham became the target of US President Barack Obama’s jokes, who invited the Los Angeles Galaxy footballers to the White House to award special prizes for the previous season. So, Obama made fun of Beckham, saying that almost all Galaxy players are suitable for children by age, and before that, comparing himself to a footballer, he noted that they were both “young and successful specialists”. The president also called Beckham "a strong guy," because "he has his own line of underwear, which means he is undoubtedly strong." Putting the jokes aside, Barack Obama praised Beckham: “Last year, at 36, David played his best season in the MLS, leading his team to victory. He did this in spite of a back injury sustained in the middle of the season, and in spite of the Achilles tendon injury suffered a week before the championship match ” ^[166] .
• David Beckham took part in the ceremony of transferring the Olympic flame to England ^[167] .
• A curious incident occurred in May 2013 in the locker room after the championship match in France . Beckham left his ipod unattended, which was used by his team mate Zlatan Ibrahimovic . Seeing Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez in the playlist, Ibrahimovic asked: “David, are you listening to this?”. To which he received the answer: "This is my children listening." After that, in an interview, Zlatan said: “I thought I would find good British rock, well, or hip-hop. It's nice to know that Beckham doesn't have good taste in everything. True, he later explained that his children listen to this music, but we doubt something ” ^[168] .

• Official site (eng.)
• Beckham, David - Lentapedia article. year 2012.
• Profile on the MLS website
• Profile on the official site of FC Real Madrid (English)