The funny thing is that he says it is not about the money. He says he sees a lot of potential in that team.(are they one of the top american teams??). everybody knows it is about the money, and getting more famous in the USA. I never liked him as a player, IMHO he has a sweet shot and pass. But that is it.
At this point in his career, the only thing I find good is the fact that he's probably the best in the world at free kicks but awful at everything else. Beckham is trash now and it'll be nice to see him get schooled by a bunch of American nobodys.
There are a lot of people in the US that watch soccer but simply don't care about MLS, that's the people that MLS is trying to bring in. Whether they show up or stay afterwards or not is debatable though. It's at least getting people to talk about MLS though, so it's already working to a point. LA is only paying around $10 million a year, the rest is coming from his sponsorship deals. I guess they just like throwing the $250 million figure out there. There's a lot of parity in MLS so there's really no team that dominates the league. LA won the championship 2 years ago but missed the playoffs last year. He'll probably help soccer in general more than LA by giving youth players an icon to look up to and by bringing added attention to the league.
man, i've never really cared about soccer before, but if a big star like beckham starts playing in the U.S., then i still won't care.
Through the history of the league, LA has been one of the more successful teams. They did miss out on the playoffs, but like DrLudicrous said, there is a lot of parity. The move has already worked to a point. People are talking about the MLS. People who typically don't talk about the MLS are. I have played the game for the better part of 30 years. I watch FSC regularly. I am also one of those who was never really able to get into the MLS. However, I have more with the Dynamo and I will be watching every possible game I get in Austin next season. I'd love to see how Beckham fares. I don't believe his career is over. I do think he's on the back side. However, would Real Madrid offer him 2 years if they thought he was done?
It's chic to slam David Beckham right now but the guy is still an amazing talent. You guys aren't seeing the big picture. David Beckham has now legitimized the league in the eyes of many. Also, young talent from other countries that didn't consider MLS before may do so now. He's only making 9 million a year in actual salary and the Galaxy are going to make that back on jersey sponsorship and increased ticket sales alone. Those of you chiming in with your "soccer sucks and I don't watch comments" should wonder why you spend time talking about a sport you don't like.
Hooray because of beckham's arrival in the U.S. we get to see more of Tom Cruise... The Beckhams are known to be really good friends with Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes and I'm thinking we are going to be seeing more photos of all of them more often.
A better description of how he's getting paid... Debunking the myths behind Beckham's contract Jen Chang, ESPNsoccernet In the furor following the announcement that global soccer icon David Beckham has agreed to what appears to be a record-breaking $250 million, five-year contract with the L.A. Galaxy, most of the questions have centered quite rightfully on what Beckham will do for the league and how Major League Soccer will fund the deal (and perhaps bankrupt itself in the process). The simple answer is that MLS and AEG won't actually pay for the contract --at least not the bulk of it. AEG, a subsidiary of the Anschutz Company, helps ensure MLS' financial backing and owns the Chicago Fire, Houston Dynamo and Los Angeles Galaxy; when the league was founded, AEG owned most MLS teams. On first glance, Beckham's deal appears to be the biggest contract in sports history (reportedly paying Beckham $50 million for 2007), dwarfing that of the heavy hitters and trendsetters in other major sports (MLB's Alex Rodriguez made $25 million in 2006 and the NBA's Kevin Garnett is making $21 million over the course of the '06-'07 season). However, on closer inspection, one can see that the reported contract estimates have been carefully worded. AP reported that the Galaxy, citing industry experts, said the Beckham deal "is worth more than $250 million in salary and commercial endorsements." The key phrase to note here are the words "commercial endorsements" and not the word "salary." It's actually more an estimate of what people think he could potentially earn as opposed to what he will receive annually in paychecks from MLS and the Galaxy. The reality is this: The salary portion of Beckham's deal is relatively minuscule compared to the huge figures being bandied around and is well in line with what most top soccer players around the world earn. Bear in mind also that Beckham probably decided only on Thursday to sign with MLS after Real Madrid's contract offer almost certainly would have required him to take a pay cut (this is conjecture, though, since the details of his negotiations with Real Madrid have not been made public). A league source confirmed to ESPNsoccernet's Kristian Dyer two weeks ago that the offer on the table from MLS to Beckham was a four-year deal worth $36 million in salary (at $9 million annually). Reuters' Michelle Nichols reported Thursday that MLS sources say his annual playing income is only in the "single-figure millions." Even if MLS upped its original annual salary offer, the logical assumption is that it would only be by a few additional million or so per year. Since Beckham is reportedly making $6 million to $7 million per year with Real, paying anywhere from a $2 million to $4 million premium to land him is just smart business. This being the case, remember this: According to the Designated Player Rule, MLS is on the hook for only $400,000 of Beckham's salary, with AEG and the Galaxy stumping up the remaining $8 million to $10 million. So where, exactly, is the remaining $39 million to $40 million a year coming from? The simple answer is endorsements and creative clauses stemming from Beckham agreeing to play in MLS. It's rumored that Adidas will be paying an additional $5 million to $6 million a year just to sponsor the Galaxy's jersey, ironic since they already manufacture them. If that doesn't tell the story of Beckham's endorsement appeal, nothing else will -- and presumably Beckham will get a cut of that fee. "Most of the value is from David's worldwide endorsement," MLS deputy commissioner Ivan Gazidis told Reuters on Thursday. "That's a separate deal. That's his deal with [Creative Artists Agency] and 19 Entertainment. That's not something we're involved in." 19 Entertainment, for those of you who don't know, is Simon Fuller's company. The same Simon Fuller who created and owns the rights to the "American Idol" and "Pop Idol" phenomenon. He's also the one-time guiding mentor behind the success of the Spice Girls and the former Posh Spice herself, Victoria Beckham. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that as part of the lure to draw Beckham to MLS, one can assume the Beckhams will be given a varied array of choices in film and TV with which to conquer America. Whether this will result in the much-mooted talk show for Posh, a "Beckhams" reality TV show or Victoria's addition to the "American Idol" judge panel, one can only wonder. However, it's clear that a large portion of that additional $40 million or so annually factors in the prospective TV and film platforms. Endorsement-wise, the figure also probably contains the values of any proposed deals that Beckham will sign pending his arrival in MLS. Again, it's pretty safe to conclude that certain domestic U.S. brands will only have agreed to use Beckham as an advertising spokesman if he's actually in MLS. The exact parameters of his deal are still undisclosed and MLS has so far been unwilling to comment specifically, but there might also be language in the contract about Beckham's percentage of gate receipts or commission from shirt sales. There's no doubt there are clauses about Beckham's image rights, the source of much contention with Real Madrid, which wanted to retain 50 percent control over his rights in any new deal. Presumably the Galaxy agreed to take a lesser portion of his image rights, or even ceded Beckham total control over his image rights. Perhaps AEG has lined up additional investors willing to invest in Beckham's soccer academy project. It's hard to put an exact dollar amount on all of this without knowing the specifics, but it's clear at this point that the bulk of his $250 million deal factors in external elements outside of MLS and AEG that are contributing to the total valuation. Clearly the $250 million figure being bandied about is just another example of the clever marketing machine behind the Beckham brand, designed to raise the profile of Beckham and the MLS deal even further. Case in point: When the NBA's Cleveland Cavaliers signed high school phenom LeBron James in 2003, they signed him to a three-year deal that paid him $12.96 million. If James' advisers used the same creative license that Beckham's advisers have done, they could easily have factored in James' reported $90 million shoe deal with Nike at the time and other various endorsements (such as Sprite) and reported that James had signed a deal "estimated to be worth up to $120 million-plus, richest ever for a teenager in sports history." This being the case, the naysayers can stop panicking about the inevitable ruination of MLS finances. Yes, MLS will continue to pursue other high-profile players in the wake of the Beckham deal, but as in the case of the Beckham deal, they'll proceed with fiscal prudence and won't break the bank to get them. "The league will continue to operate on a sensible stage," said Jon Oram of Proskauer Rose, one of the two lawyers who worked on the Beckham contract. Mention the possibility of player unrest and any potential labor dispute as a result of Beckham's salary, and it's something the league has already taken into account. "Our labor lawyers have consulted with MLS, and [Beckham's contract] has been thoroughly vetted in that respect," said Brad Ruskin, who also worked on the deal. So what does it all mean? No doubt there might be a jealous player or someone out to make his name who could choose to take an in-game swipe at Beckham, but it's hardly a situation Beckham hasn't already faced elsewhere in the world. The reality is that most MLS players are smart enough to realize that in the long run, the Beckham deal will probably mean more money for them all. As for MLS? Given the true rationale behind the figures, it's safe to assume the league or the Galaxy won't be bankrupting themselves anytime soon over this deal.
Beckham is far past his prime, and even then, he was a wuss (even though his passes were great). If he really gets that sort of money, the LA Galaxy and the MLS are idiots. Plus, he talks like Mike Tyson. <object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/eKFTCkZHAs4"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/eKFTCkZHAs4" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object> And, he got owned on the Ali G show.
They didn't bring him in for his on field contributions, he's here for marketing. And he's already doing a great job regarding that, LA Galaxy and MLS haven't ever gotten this kind of press before. And, the Ali G interview was after everybody knew who Ali G was so I wouldn't really call it being owned.
On one hand I hope he still has some game for the good of MLS. But on the other hand I hope he fails miserably since he's playing for Dallas.
Now the coach at Real Madrid is saying he won't be playing for them again. I expect a deal to be worked out soon so he starts the playing in MLS when the season starts in April. If that happens he'll make his MLS debut here in Houston.
See more pics here: http://www.style.com/w/feat_story/071107 http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/soccer/07/11/beckhams.w.ap/index.html Bare it like Beckhams Posh and Becks strip down in new magazine spread Posted: Wednesday July 11, 2007 7:04PM; Updated: Wednesday July 11, NEW YORK (AP) -- Victoria and David Beckham, aka Posh and Becks, strip down in steamy photos for the August issue of W magazine. They strike a sultry pose for the cover of the issue, on newsstands July 20, but things get more seductive in a photo spread inside. Steven Klein's photos show the pair in various states of undress -- kissing passionately, sunning themselves atop a car and having an intimate moment in the bedroom. The 32-year-old soccer star and his wife, Posh Spice of the Spice Girls, will be seen in an NBC special, "Victoria Beckham: Coming to America," to air Monday. It follows Beckham, 33, as she prepares to move from Europe to Los Angeles, where her husband will play for the Los Angeles Galaxy of Major League Soccer. (David Beckham appears briefly in the special, but viewers won't see the couple's three sons.) "I think people are really going to see me for the first time," Victoria Beckham tells the magazine. "I think they have this impression that I'm this miserable cow who doesn't smile. But I'm actually quite the opposite." The couple, who were married in September 1999, got together in 1997 after meeting at a soccer game in London. "I didn't really know who he was," she says. "He was always with his mom, dad and sister while a lot of the footballers were at the bar getting drunk. I could sense right from the start that David was a gentleman, and very family oriented, which is important because I'm the same." They also connect on a sartorial level. "I've always had a liking toward clothes, but when I met Victoria, she directed me in the right way," he says. "When she tells me something doesn't look good, I believe her. We have a connection that way." Other than the recently announced Spice Girls reunion tour, Beckham has denied she's planning to resurrect her showbiz career. The Spice Girls tour is set to open Dec. 7 in Los Angeles, reuniting the five-member girl group that sold millions of records in the 1990s before breaking up in 2001.
I saw this yesterday...I think she's hot...I'll try and catch a game to see him play...c'mon, it's bend it like beckham...
