David Beckham arrives in LA ...

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Roy Hersh
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David Beckham arrives in LA ...

Post by Roy Hersh »

So we have Mr. Bend It Like Beckham himself here in the USA as the ambassador of football/soccer and player for LA. Posh seems all giddy about being in the USA. Do you think Beckham has enough left to stick around for more than a paycheck?
Ambition driven by passion, rather than money, is as strong an elixir as is Port. http://www.fortheloveofport.com
Todd Pettinger
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Post by Todd Pettinger »

My big fear is that he'll be TOO good for the US football, which is still in its infancy. May be a man playing amongst boys. Won't make it fun for anyone, and that turns a guy to looking at his paycheck long and hard and it being of more and more worth to him.

Only time will tell I suppose!

Todd
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Al B.
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Post by Al B. »

Beckham may not be at his peak these days but he still has plenty left to offer - so much so that he is back in the full England team, playing in the European Championships (the equivalent of the Copa d'America but with more than two strong teams :wink: )

The rumours in the UK are that he probably went to the US too early. There are thoughts that he fell out with the previous coach of Ream Madrid and that he was benched and played very little in the first half of the last season. As a result of this he looked to move and received offers from only a handful of teams, with most top European teams having effectively dismissed him as a player who has lost his skill and form through "old" age. As a result, Beckham was attracted by the challenge of promoting a sport that he loves in America and the chance to live the glamour lifestyle that his wife has always craved. However, when you see him play or speak - especially if you see him on one of his school visits where he is playing with the kids in a playground - you can see that he is still at heart a shy, quiet man who does nothing more than love to play the game that he is good at.

But then he won his starting place back at Real Madrid, had a pretty good (if patchy) second half to the season, he also won his place back in the England team and made a big difference to the way England played in one of their games. Suddenly a number of European teams realised that they had made a mistake in passing up the chance to have Beckham on their books and the stories circulated in the papers over here that Barcelona / Madrid / Newcastle / anyone were trying to pick him up either from the Galaxy or from Real Madrid. But Beckham stuck to his agreement with the Galaxy and is now in "La-La Land", as his shrewd but stupid wife described it.

Beckham is still a class player and should be able to coach his team mates and also raise the profile of soccer in the US. Even if he does nothing more than encourage children to stick with soccer for a few more years after High School, he will have made a difference. And I take his "salary" with a pinch of salt. Most of David Beckham's income in the past has come from a share of merchandise sales, appearances and sponsorship deals. It wouldn't surprise me if the contract he has with the Galaxy was a modest basic salary with some sort of promise to find or promote endorsements and sponsorship with Beckham getting a cut of the additional income coming to the team up to a maximum of $5m per year.

But I have no inside information, these are just my own thoughts on what could be an explanation for all the fuss.

Alex
Marc J.
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Post by Marc J. »

As someone who is at ground zero in this entire David Beckham hoopla I'd just like all the hype to die down. EVERY news broadcast has some sort of special segment about David and/or Posh and/or their dog and/or their choice in laundry detergent. From all indication Beckham is a little past his prime, but in the US that shouldn't be much of an issue. His star power along will sell jerseys and focus much more attention on MLS and that really is what this signing was all about. I'm interested to see how successful the Galaxy will be on the field during this upcoming season.
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