David Beckham, full name David Robert Joseph Beckham, is an English football (soccer) player who rose to international prominence for his on-field performance and highly publicized personal life. He was born on May 2, 1975, in Leytonstone, East London, England.

Beckham won a football competition when he was 11 years old, and as a teenager, he played for Manchester United’s youth team, leading it to a national championship in 1992. 

Three years later, Beckham joined Manchester United’s professional team in league competition, and during the 1995–96 season, he helped the club win both the league and the FA Cup. Then, in August 1996, Beckham drew global notice when he scored a goal from the halfway line (approximately similar to a golfer’s hole in one). 

Manchester United won the league title the following year, and Beckham was named Young Player of the Year. Beckham made his international debut for England in a World Cup qualifying match in 1996. He was named captain of the national squad in 2000.

Beckham remained active in soccer even after his playing days were over. He was the owner and president of Inter Miami CF, a Major League Soccer team that debuted in 2020.

Beckham married Victoria Adams, better known as “Posh Spice” of the Spice Girls, in a grandiose ceremony in 1999. Beckham’s fame grew due to the considerable media attention paid to the pair, as did his fashion sense and ever-changing hairstyles. 

In 2003, he was appointed to the Order of the British Empire as an Officer (OBE). In 2014, he published an autobiography with the same name.