beckham

so beckham is off to the states to find more fame and more fortune.
the deal that takes him there is reported to be worth £125 million over 5 years. two things about this huge sum of money – it is his on target earnings, rather than guaranteed and that in terms of american sports such as baseball, basketball and the nfl it is not that outrageous.

rather than cheer the fact that the boy done good, beckham is described as a sell out, just interested in the money and not worried about his footballing legacy.
some have said they will never build a statue to him.
i say so what.
some say he will never be remembered for his achievements in football, but only be remembered as celebrity. which when you consider he has to be one of the most decorated english footballers in recent years is a bit harsh.
but again i say so what.
bobby moore got a statue, but his wife had to sell his medals to make sure his children had a secure future.
george best has a statue but in the end was someone who pissed his life away.

so i say good luck to beckham for making sure that hs family never wants for anything.

david beckham's crime is that not only has he been successful in his chosen career but he has also made a decent fist out of being a celebrity icon.

victoria (posh spice) beckham is blamed for beckham’s fall from grace, yet even before she came on the scene he was mocked for his silly voice. while posh may not have been much of a singer she has transformed david from being a footballer and turned him into a successful brand.

throughout their relationship the media has been keen to see them fail. even when beckham was a genuine role model: a good husband, a good father and a true professional sportsman (no drugs, no rowdy nights etc). none of which makes for an interesting story.
even his remarkable reinvention and rehabilitation after the argentina incident fails to get the praise it deserve.
so when the rebecca loos story broke the media had it’s field day and they have never really stopped.

we are told beckham has gone in search of money rather than glory. which conveniently forgets he didn’t want to leave manchester united – he was pushed. he still wanted to play a role for the england squad, but he was discarded. it appears he wanted to play a role at real madrid but they wanted shot of it.
so who can blame him for walking away from it all to go somewhere he will not only be appreciated but also very well rewarded.

much of the attacks on beckham seem to grow out of the politics of envy. we don’t want to celebrate success we would much rather get behind the tim henman’s and jenson button’s of the world. there is resentment that beckham does have it all: the looks, the skills, the wife, the kids and the lifestyle.
we create them as celebrities, we expect then to act in a certain way, we want them to fail, we want to be able to say “see they are no better than we are” while all the time envying them, and living life vicariously through them.

yet for all of this david beckham comes across as a nice bloke and unlike so many in sport he has done something to give back to the sport that has made him so successful, with his footballing academies.

i hope that when he is in states plying his trade he sends a few postcards to the press and some of his fellow professionals “wishing you were here.”