David Beckham, the previous England soccer captain who has been an envoy for the U.N. youngsters’s fund for 20 years, is to obtain a knighthood in subsequent week’s honors record from King Charles III, in accordance to U.Okay. media reports Friday.
Without citing sources, the BBC mentioned Beckham is ready to obtain additional recognition each for his soccer profession, and his contributions to British society.
The knighthood will make Beckham “Sir David” whereas his spouse since 1999, former Spice Girl Victoria Beckham, will develop into “Lady Beckham.” In 2003, Beckham was awarded the Order of the British Empire, or OBE, for companies to soccer. Victoria Beckham received the identical honor for companies to the style trade in a later New Year Honours record.
Honors are awarded twice a 12 months, as soon as at New Year’s, after which in June to mark the king’s birthday. They are principally made on the advice of the federal government, although the monarch has enter too.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s workplace wouldn’t affirm the press reports, as is customized. Buckingham Palace declined to remark. The Associated Press has not been ready to independently affirm the award of the knighthood, which was first reported in The Sun tabloid newspaper.
In video footage printed by The Sun from the Chelsea Flower Show earlier this month, the king is seen asking Beckham if he “received his 50th birthday present.” The King appeared to say “I’m glad it got to you,” with Beckham responding: “It was incredible, thank you, it was very kind.”
Beckham and the king have crossed paths on quite a few events, together with at state features. Last 12 months, Beckham grew to become an envoy for The King’s Foundation, an academic and sustainability charity Charles launched in 1990.
Beckham is the one English soccer participant to rating at three totally different World Cups and his illustrious profession included the treble-winning marketing campaign of 1999, when Manchester United received the Premier League, the FA Cup and the Champions League.
With 115 appearances for the England nationwide staff, Beckham is third within the all-time record. He additionally captained the aspect on 59 events.
After leaving Manchester United in 2003, Beckham performed for Real Madrid, Los Angeles Galaxy and Paris Saint-Germain. He now co-owns the MLS staff Inter Miami.
His profession wasn’t all the time a excessive, although. After the 1998 World Cup in France, Beckham was extensively vilified for his petulant kick of Argentina participant Diego Simeone, which noticed him despatched off. Many followers blamed him for England’s exit.
In 2023’s Netflix documentary sequence “Beckham,” he described the abuse he skilled, which included an effigy of him hanging from a noose exterior a London pub.
“I knew it was bad at the time, but going over that whole thing was quite a tough one,” he informed the AP.
The four-part documentary sequence about Beckham’s life {and professional} profession scored him an Emmy in 2024 for excellent documentary or non-fiction sequence.
Beckham has been a model icon and celeb and has been a distinguished supporter of charities, together with UNICEF, which created “The David Beckham UNICEF Fund” in 2015 to mark a decade’s partnership between the 2. Beckham additionally performed a pivotal function in London being awarded the Summer Olympic Games in 2012.
If the knighthood is confirmed, Beckham would be a part of an elite group of British soccer gamers to have been knighted, together with England’s 1966 World Cup winners, Geoff Hurst and Bobby Charlton, and Scotland’s Kenny Dalglish.
Published – June 07, 2025 12:14 pm IST
