Despite the fact that the two soccer stars have not worked together in over a decade, it’s fitting that David Beckham would announce his retirement shortly after Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson announced his. Beckham’s path eventually led him from a stint as one of the “Galacticos” of Real Madrid to his role as the ambassador of soccer in the USA to eye-catching cameos in Milan before closing out his career with one final hurrah in Paris. But the golden boy from Manchester will always be the athlete the fans will remember.
Beckham was part of a so-called Golden Generation of players that emerged from United’s youth program in the early 90’s. Alongside such Manchester mainstays as Paul Scholes, Gary Neville and Ryan Giggs (still playing for Man U at 41), Beckham was the poster boy for the all-conquering 90’s team.
More importantly he became the face of British football, leading it on its charge to becoming the most watched league in the world. In the United States he became the only soccer player that most Americans could name, the one they knew from the movies if not the pitch. Sespite the somewhat mixed success of his stint in Los Angeles, it’s hard to believe that the sport’s recent stateside growth in popularity would have happened without him.
It is somewhat fashionable (particularly by Man U haters…of which I am one) to point out that Beckham was never really that good a player – compared to Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, he certainly seems limited. He wasn’t a prolific scorer (from open play at least). He could never tackle particularly well. And in press conferences, with his surprisingly high voice and muddled accent, he was prone to delivering empty platitudes that never gave the impression that he was a terribly sharp student of the game.
But this all misses the point. Beckham’s one undeniable (on the pitch) skill was with the dead ball. Delivering free kicks and corners with a kind of deadly precision and silky technique, Beckham profited from the only time a team sport shone the spotlight on one man. And he reveled in that hushed calm that existed in the second before his foot touched the ball and put it into the net (or up into the stands, with great laughter and groaning). Can you think of another athlete who’s had a movie named after their technique alone?
And of course off the pitch is where Beckham’s image truly flourished. Beckham topped Forbes magazine’s most recent list of the world’s best-paid soccer players, but $44.1 million of the $50.6 million he earned in 2012 came as payment for commercial endorsement deals with the likes of Adidas, Coty, H&M, Sainsbury and watchmaker Breitling. Beckham’s sponsorships made it easier for him to announce he’d donate his entire $6.5 million salary from Paris Saint-Germain to a children’s charity.
Ask the average person their first thought about Beckham, and they’re much less likely to mention the incredible 1999 Champions League Final comeback than they are to cite his pop-star wife, his underwear ads, his falling out with Fergie or his friendship with Tom Cruise.
It's hard to imagine in what capacity Beckham will continue in the sport. His mild manner makes him an unlikely candidate for coaching, while his squeaky voice might hinder any career in film or broadcasting. It's equally hard to imagine football without him, and Beckham can continue to do quite well as a jet-setting ambassador for the sport in countries from the U.K. to China. “Beckham will continue to bank over $40 million at least this year and next, enough for him to land among the top three highest-paid soccer stars,” Forbes noted today.
But as the present memory of the tanned and tattooed father of 4 superstar recedes from public view, it’s the floppy haired kid, putting in a perfect cross for Cantona to convert, that will linger as soccer’s chosen image for how it would like to view itself.
Beckham Timeline
1995 – Makes English Premier League debut for Manchester United
1997 – Is voted Young Player of the Year
1999 – Leads Man U to a never-repeated triple (Winning the league, the league cup, and the Champions League)
1999 – Marries Spice Girls star Victoria Adams. OK Magazine pays 1.5 million for pictures of the ceremony
2003 – Signs a “lifetime” contract with Adidas worth $160 million
2004 – Traded to Real Madrid for $41,000,000
2007 – Moves to the LA Galaxy and signs a reported $32.5 million, five-year contract (more than 10 times the average salary for an MLS player)
2009 –2010 Spends two half-seasons with AC Milan on loan. Beckham contributes some his salary back to the MLS team to facilitate the move
2013 – Joins PSG for his final half-season as a professional footballer. Donates his salary to charity