David Beckham is coming to the U.S. in July, 2007. He has signed a complex package worth an estimated quarter of a billion dollars with the Los Angeles Galaxy team. That's billion with a "b". Beckham is an international celebrity of the highest order and, at age 31, he still has plenty of playing time left. (And even if he does nothing but strut around the field, no doubt West Hollywood at least still will be enthralled.)
Will Beckham do for Los Angeles soccer what Wayne Gretzky did for Los Angeles hockey? Has globalization finally begun to penetrate even that most conservative of institutions, American sports? Only time will tell. But I, for one, have a feeling I'll be heading out to see my first live professional soccer game sometime this coming Fall.
Thursday, January 11, 2007
And then, maybe he can run for Governor.
Posted by Dr. Strangelove at 11:56 AM
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9 comments:
Within 1 year he will quit Galaxy and go full time into TV ads or second-rate reality shows. In fact, I doubt he will play more than a dozen games.
// posted by LTG
What makes you think so?
This is a move to Hollywood, not a move to play in the exciting MLS.
// posted by LTG
Either he'll be on your screens by the end of next year, or Posh will be......
(because my money's on it being her choice for him to be moving, and now he's no longer on the England squad there's no reason for him to be close to the UK)
// posted by Pombat
No, he'll play. He can star and it's reasonable money even for him. Posh may be sick of Spain and rainy Britain. He was getting sick of being on the bench. Whatever you want to say about him he is a brilliant player and very competitive.
And if you've ever heard him speak you'll understand that's what he'll want to do.
// posted by Spotted Handfish
GUYS! It's a quarter of a billion dollars and you're trying to guess why he moved!?
On a side note: The head coach of the German national team lives in Malibu. Maybe he'll run for governor first.
// posted by RBR
Posh will be great for American tabloids - she makes the current crop of skeletal ingenues look like the "before" pictures in diet pill ads.
-Seventh Sister
// posted by Anonymous
RBR, he can get tons of money wherever he moves - the exact amount isn't really important I don't think (see story below for demonstration of wealth) - what we're trying to figure out is why he picked LA?
Is it that he wants to play more soccer (he's still young enough to continue his sporting career, and undeniably talented), is he maybe considering setting himself up for a role once he finishes playing, either a sporting one, or a Hollywood one, is it that Posh wants to try out Hollywood, is it that she's getting into Scientology as a recent news report suggests?
And the demo of wealth story - parent of a friend - wanted to take her husband to a certain golf club (can't remember which, but pretty exclusive, and one he'd always wanted to play at) for his 60th birthday weekend, to stay there, and play and generally have a great time. So, she saved up and booked the room. She then got a phonecall from the club asking if they could move their booking to the following week, as the club had a request for a large booking. No no, thanks, but it has to be that weekend - it's a birthday thing. So, the offer came back, if you can move to next weekend, we can upgrade you to this suite for free etc. Still no, because she was just interested in that particular weekend. This went back and forth for a little, until she finally agreed to an offer to move to the following weekend, enjoy their top suite with everything paid for, and have their house mortgage paid off - Beckham wanted the entire place booked out for one of his sons' birthdays (to guarantee no photographers), and was paying whatever it took to shift all the other guests. This is not a man who's in need of money.
And Seventh Sister - you're right - before Posh, I didn't realise that it was possible for someone's knees to look underweight...
// posted by Pombat
Of course, I wasn't trying to say anyone was wrong or trying to pick a fight.
Great story Pombat. I'm sure he's loaded - and Posh Spice has money too of course. Of course, if he pays people's home loans off as a way to get the suite he wants for his kid's birthday party, he may be spending it pretty fast.
Besides, I hear he's been riding the pine a lot in Spain and I wonder if many primier European teams would pay him at all to play. At least in the US MLS he can get more money than he's ever gotten before and still be the best player on the pitch for a few more years.
I wonder what Brett Favre would do if some Canadian Football team offered him a couple of hundred million dollars (US) to play QB for a couple more years in Toronto or Ottawa or something.
// posted by RBR
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