http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/reuters/070111/sports/sports_soccer_beckham_col DAMN!, i dont know if this is a step down or a leap?
Im calling up the Toronto FC to get some tix as he is supposedly going to be playing here late summer
here comes the most hyped player in the world. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/main.jhtml;jsessionid=UNUJV4HOSVPWLQFIQMGSFGGAVCBQWIV0?xml=/sport/2007/01/11/ufnbec11.xml Beckswatch: How the story unfolded By Telegraph online Last Updated: 4:37pm GMT 11/01/2007 Thursday + David Beckham announces he will leave Real Madrid at the end of the season and join US side Los Angeles Galaxy in a £128million (250 million US dollars) five-year deal. + Beckham says: "After discussing several options with my family and advisers to either stay here at Madrid or join other major British and European clubs, I have decided to join the Los Angeles Galaxy and play in the MLS from August this year." Becks: rumours abound + Newcastle rule themselves out of a move for Beckham. Manager Glenn Roeder says: "David Beckham is a fantastic player, but we are not and will not be involved in any negotiations to bring him to Newcastle United." + Manchester City manager Stuart Pearce scoffs at the possibility of Beckham joining his club. Pearce: "He is a great player, of course. But we are Manchester City; he played for Manchester United." + Sheffield United manager Neil Warnock has his say. "I'll definitely have him. If he wants to give me a ring then he can come. But if I were him, my advice would be to stay put in Spain. I'd tell him to stay there and enjoy it. "This is a player who kept England in competitions on his own, and is a great ambassador. Why he would want to come back here with all media hype and stick he would get, I don't know. But that's how we are in England, and I should know more than anybody." -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Wednesday + Reports emerge that Beckham will leave Real Madrid in the summer, according to Mijatovic, who reportedly tells Sky Italia television: "Beckham will leave us, we will not renew his contract." + Beckham's spokesman claims Real Madrid's contract offer is "still on the table" and talks will resume on a two-year deal with the club on Thursday. + Real say a mistranslation of the Mijatovic interview caused the confusion. "Mijatovic was just stating a fact that the contract has not yet been renewed," says communications director Gaspar Rosety. + A verbatim translation of the telephone conversation between the interviewer and Mijatovic is released: "Will Beckham's contract be renewed?" "No (pause) no. Beckham's contract has not been renewed." + PR king Max Clifford has his say on what Becks should do next. "The sensible thing for David Beckham, in terms of prestige, would be to buy into a football club because he would become the first footballer-director," said Clifford. "It would be something new." -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tuesday + Real Madrid sporting director Predrag Mijatovic says a decision over David Beckham's contract, due to expire in the sumer, will be reached the following week. "A few months ago we presented an offer to extend his contract that reflected his importance as a football player and as a marketing image," Mijatovic tells Spanish radio. "He asked for time to think about it, but we are in a situation where we don't have time. We have to decide now. Next week we will address the issue." + After meeting with coach Fabio Capello and president Ramon Calderon, Mijatovic promises a get-tough approach towards the club's under-performing players. Defeats to Deportivo La Coruna and Recreativo Huelva have left the club third in La Liga, five points behind leaders Sevilla. "We are going to change a number of things in the club's internal disciplinary regime," Mijatovic says. "We are going to ask more of the players in terms of commitment and professionalism. We need a professional team to be able to perform to the highest standards." + Beckham is omitted from Real's squad for the Copa del Rey tie against Real Betis on Thursday.
How much did he make playing in Spain? $50m/year is a pretty good paycheck for a guy that's past his prime (especially a 5 year deal!).
Why that many of the good players of soccer must finish their race in equipment of eua, I am not saying that beckham finishes it here but for example lothar mathäus that I finish its race in metrostrars... Sorry if you dont understand it but i dont know how to say some words.
I think you're saying: I don't know why many of the good soccer players finish their careers in the USA. I'm not saying that Beckahm will finish his career in the USA, but Lother Mathaus, for example, finished his career with the Metrostars. Correct me if I'm wrong.
Good financial move for him, obviously. Especially at this point in his career. This will segue into entertainment opportunities too. Someone is taking a big risk putting up the money for a guy like that in a sport that never really seems to catch on here. I'd doubt that his presence would do much for ethnic viewers.
Its the wifey that wants to live in LA, with all its shopping potential, she wears the trousers after all, and was never happy in Spain apparently.
The guy can flat out play. I am very excited to see him play when they play Columbus. He will put asses in the seats and that is all he is being paid to do here. I was very upset when he left Man U. but I am happy he is coming here.
He will sell seats and bring much needed publicity to the MLS. Whether he plays well probably won't matter much. His looks did as much for him as his game.
i think it'll be a big step down for him and a majot leap for football in the US. i think if becks wanted to rebuilt his career, he should have went back to the UK, where it all started. but having said all that, i think he chosed the US because of the privacy he gets, which is priceless, IMO, to him. i hope he'll have a good future, as he played very well, for Manchester United, the team that i supported since i was a kid. at his peak, that guy was just flawless...
I don't know much about him because I could care less about soccer. I really dislike his wife, though. She has that *****y look I just hate. Her band sucked and I cannot understand why people still talk about them. RMX
Again!!! Athletes are soooo over payed. 250 million?? They oughta put it towards police and teachers salaries...
I understand what MLS is trynig to acomplish with this hire, but I seriously doubt it will work. Americans aren't suddenly going to start watching in droves because Beckham is in the league. The numbers don't come close to adding up on this deal.
Who is the "they" that should be forking out this money? Beckham isn't getting $250m to kick a ball, he's getting $250m because MLS thinks he can draw fans into soccer stadiums. No different than a CEO getting $50m paycheck for increasing the value of his/her company and creating wealth for shareholders.
I think it's a calculated risk. Like you, I don't know that it will pay off, but I at least applaud the effort. If MLS doesn't do something, the whole league will fail. That will cost a lot more than the $250m gamble they're taking on Beckham. I think America's response (increase in viewing) to the latest World Cup helped pave the way for this deal. That showed the potential for Americans to embrace soccer as a mainstream sport.
