He has the face that launched a thousand endorsements, the most famous right foot in Britain and an obsessive fan following. David Beckham tells about life after football.
Women are sobbing; men are clambering on ladders to get a better view; children are screaming and everybody is waving a smartphone in the air. It’s a rainy Saturday afternoon in Macau and the appearance of David Beckham has turned the Shoppes at Four Seasons into a heaving mass of hysteria. There aren’t many people in the world that can generate this kind of reaction, and those that do are usually film or music stars. But Beckham’s fame has always transcended football.
For more than a decade, he was the world’s most recognisable sportsman. At Manchester United, he won six Premier League titles and two FA Cups. On an international level, he played for England 115 times and was captain for 59 of the matches. However, Beckham, now retired from the sport, hasn’t participated in an international tournament since 2006 and spent the final years of his career in the footballing wilderness that is Los Angeles. For any other sportsman, it would spell the beginning of obscurity, but for Beckham, it has catapulted him to even greater fame and fortune.
Beckham shows his athletic form in a 2007 friendly match against Germany
Unlike many other famous people, in the flesh David Beckham isn’t taller, shorter, thinner, fatter, uglier or better looking than he appears on screen or in print. And yes, he’s outrageously handsome, with fine features, crinkling blue eyes, blonde waves and a chiselled body ensconced in a navy blue Dior suit. Deific appearances aside, Beckham’s also disarmingly normal. He has a light London accent and his voice, often mocked in the British media for being ridiculously highpitched, is entirely unremarkable. He’s open, friendly and immediately fulsome in his praise of Macau (“Every time I come to this amazing place I have fun”), Hong Kong (“One of my favourite Asian cities, the energy is incredible”) and even what appears to be a rather exhausting press junket (“Everyone’s been so amazing to me”).
Beckham’s easy demeanour is key to his success. Despite the gentle ribbing he receives in print, people are above all rooting for him to succeed, on and off the pitch. “I’m not sure why I’m popular, but I am proud that people notice me and what I do and wear," says Beckham. "And I like the fact that I have an influence in the footballing world. It’s a real privilege to have that.”
David Beckham in his Belstaff clothing campaign
In 2013, Beckham was appointed as China’s first global football ambassador in a bid to revive the game’s local image after match-fixing scandals and the departure of international players. “I’ve always been popular in Asia for myself and for the teams I’ve played for,” he says. “I’ve gone from being a footballer for the last 22 years into the business side of things, but I have been planning this a long time. I knew that once I stopped playing, I had to keep doing something in football to make me happy. I enjoy it a lot and I think that’s what brought the success. I’m also very passionate about getting people moving and making kids exercise in particular. That’s what motivates me.”
One of Beckham’s most memorable campaigns was for H&M, where a 15-storey full-body image of Beckham in his underwear was hand-painted on the side of a building in Manhattan in 2012. I ask him how it felt tosee himself dominating the New York skyline in just a pair of pants, and he roars with laughter and says, “Well, I guess it’s a pretty unusual feeling. One day I was driving there and stopped to take a picture of it, and this guy walked past me and said, ‘Dude, have you seen the size of your package?’ That was kind of embarrassing, but on the whole I’m really proud of the H&M campaign.”
David, Romeo and Victoria Beckham with Burberry CEO Christopher Bailey at an event to celebrate Romeo’s recent ad campaign
Beckham has always had unusually lucrative and successful brand partnerships, and his current focus is on biker-clothing brand Belstaff, for which he is designing a line of jackets, and whisky label Haig Club. “I’m lucky to work with such fantastic brands,” he says. “Choosing them is always personal, because if it’s not personal then it’s not going to work. I love the clothes from Belstaff and people can see me wearing them a lot in my personal life. And as a sportsman, I’m brand new to the concept of promoting an alcohol brand, but I was drawn to the 400-year history behind the Haig family—and I do enjoy a good glass of whisky.” He’s also a business partner to Las Vegas Sands Corporation, the parent company of Sands Retail, hence his visit to Macau.
Beckham has undoubtedly made a triumphant transition from sportsman to businessman, but football will nonetheless remain his one true passion. And as he turns 40, memories of his sporting career seem bittersweet. “I am fulfilled and happy with this new stage of my life, but I will always miss playing football as it was such a successful part of my life,” he says. “What I miss the most is playing for England. I’m a very patriotic person about my country, and being England captain was the proudest and the biggest moment of my career. Just wearing the shirt made me feel great. I will always be one of England’s greatest fans.”
Images courtesy of Getty Images, Peter Lindbergh (Belstaff), and AFP Photo | Printed in Philippine Tatler January 2015 issue. Download it on your digital device via Magzter or Zinio.
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