Soccer Blog

No football player should be bigger than the team he plays for, but arguably that is a rule that does not apply to David Beckham. The Beckham PR machine netted a mean £28 million last year from a range of sponsorship deals with the likes of Armani, Motorola and… um… Sharpie pens – not bad for a player who many would say is well past his best.

But while Beckham’s powers on the pitch may be slowly fading, his brand has never been stronger and that is one reason why Fabio Capello knows he needs Golden Balls in South Africa. David Beckham is far more than a player and motivator – he is a ‘feel good factor’ for the whole nation. It not just the players who need him at the world cup – we need him.

The PR Gurus behind Brand Beckham have done a brilliant job turning the boy from Essex into an institution arguably as big as our greatest football clubs. Indeed it was this very realisation that led Alex Ferguson to give David the boot – or throw it at him in 2003. When Rebecca Loos hit the headlines a few years later the PR consultants advising Becks did a great job of handling crisis management, allowing Posh and Becks to move on with their lives and emerge from the crisis relatively unscarred.

But even though David may be surrounded by the top celebrity PR experts, what really endears him to the British public is his incredible determination, drive and genuine pride in playing for his country. In David Beckham the three lions are alive and this summer we need him to help them roar in Africa. No other player represents English football the way Beckham does – arguably no other player represents football the way Beckham does. For millions of people across the world he is a God and if we have any hope of winning the World Cup we need God on our side.