Beckham Biography
One of England's most influential
football players and a tabloid favorite, former Manchester United's
midfielder, David Beckham, has become known for his talent as well as
his temperament.
David Robert Joseph Beckham was born May 2, 1975, in Leytonstone,
England. As a student in Essex, Beckham won the Bobby Charlton Soccer
Skills Award at the age of 11, making his football talent evident at an
early age.
After being signed as a trainee July 8, 1991, the Bobby Charlton fan
played as a substitute for Andrei Kanchelskis on September 23, 1992. The
game against Brighton marked Beckham's debut as a United player.
Winner of the 1992 F.A. Youth Cup and runner-up a year later, Beckham
was finally signed as a professional United player in January 1993. The
18-year-old soccer pro played in his first Champions League game and
contributed a goal to the team's final win.
Despite his talent, Beckham only made his full debut in April 1995. He
became a first team regular in the 1996-'97 seasons as a right
midfielder. In 1996, not only did England get a taste of Beckham's
crossing, free kick and long shot talent, but the player also won the
F.A. Premier League, Cup and Charity Shield; all in the same year. 1996
was also the year Beckham made his international debut in a game against
Moldova.
The same summer, Beckham scored his first international goal in the June
26, 1998 game against Colombia, although he made waves in a negative way.
During the 1998 World Cup in France, Beckham kicked Diego Simeone
lightly in the back of the leg, in retaliation for having been fouled by
the player.
Needles to say, Beckham's vengeful kick basically kicked himself -- out
of the game, that is. Outnumbered by Argentina, England lost the game (at
least that's what they attribute their loss to), and Beckham's nation
was unforgiving, to say the least.
The tabloids later followed Beckham off the soccer field and onto his
posh wedding to Spice Girl Victoria Adams, in July 1999. In March of
2000, the couple welcomed their son Brooklyn Joseph to the world.
Beckham's personal life has since overshadowed the negative media
stories focusing on his bad temper, shifting to stories on to his wife,
who is also a tabloid favorite.
Back to soccer though: In 1999, Beckham won another F.A. Cup, and came
in 2nd in the European Ballon d'Or awards and as FIFA's World Player of
the Year. He also won a Champions League title, an Intercontinental Cup
and an English league title that same year.
But despite the honors, Beckham's temper had not improved; something
that was evident after he received a red-card for tackling a Necaxa
player at the FIFA World Club Championships.
David Beckham: My Story, the United Manchester midfielder's
autobiography, was released in 1998.
Beckham also made headlines after his Ferrari had apparently been
sabotaged, and there were even attempts to kidnap Beckham's eldest son,
Brooklyn. David and Victoria Beckham welcomed their second son, Romeo,
into the world in September 2002.
At the 2002 World Cup, in another tense matchup with Argentina, Beckham
redeemed himself in the eyes of English fans when he converted a penalty
kick that eventually gave England the victory. The red card he received
four years earlier had been forgiven.
In June 2003, it was announced that Real Madrid would pay a transfer fee
of $41 million for David Beckham, who joined a team full of star
footballers like Zinedine Zidane, Luis Figo, and Ronaldo. His latest
autobiography, Beckham: Both Feet on the Ground, is an in-depth look at
Beckham's rags to riches story, his career highlights with Manchester
United, and how he balances super-stardom with his life as a family man.
In entertainment news, Beckham became an even bigger name when the
sleeper hit of 2003, Bend It Like Beckham, paid homage to the soccer
player in its title. Beckham is also getting press as the poster boy for
"metrosexuals" worldwide.
Lately, Beckham has been in the news for the wrong reasons. Rebecca
Loos, his former personal assistant, has admitted that they had an
affair, causing speculation that his marriage to Victoria Beckham is in
trouble. The News of the World, a UK newspaper, also published an
explicit transcript of the text messages exchanged between David Beckham
and Rebecca Loos, and unidentified sources claim the pair had sex at the
hotel Beckham was living in when he first arrived in Spain to play for
Real Madrid.
But everything is back to normal in the Beckham household, as Victoria
gave birth to son No. 3, Cruz, on February 20, 2005. Of course, the
birth made headlines, thanks to what the media claims is a feminine name
-- at least in Spain (Cruz means "cross" in Spanish). |
|
Beckham Options
|
