David Robert Joseph Beckham OBE, /ˈbɛkəm/[2] (born 2 May 1975) is an English former professional footballer. He has played for Manchester United, Preston North End, Real Madrid, Milan, LA Galaxy, Paris Saint-Germain, and the England national team for which he holds the appearance record for an outfield player.[3] He was the first English player to win league titles in four countries, England, Spain, the United States and France. He announced his retirement at the end of the 2012–13 season and, on 18 May 2013, played the final game of his 20-year career.[4]
Beckham's professional career began with Manchester United, where he made his first-team debut in 1992 aged 17.[5]With United, Beckham won the Premier League title six times, the FA Cup twice, and the UEFA Champions League in 1999.[5] He then played four seasons with Real Madrid,[6] winning the La Liga championship in his final season with the club.[7] In July 2007 Beckham signed a five-year contract with Major League Soccer club LA Galaxy.[8] While a Galaxy player, he spent two loan spells in Italy with Milan in 2009 and 2010. Beckham was the first British footballer to play 100Champions League games.[5]
In international football, Beckham made his England debut on 1 September 1996, at the age of 21. He was captain for six years during which he played 58 times.[9][10] He made 115 career appearances in total, appearing at three FIFA World Cupeditions (1998, 2002 and 2006) and two UEFA European Championship tournaments (2000 and 2004).
Renowned for his range of passing, crossing ability, and bending free-kicks, he has twice been runner-up for FIFA World Player of the Year, and in 2004 he was named in the FIFA 100 list of the world's greatest living players.[11][12][13]Consistently ranked among the sport's highest earners, in 2013 Beckham was listed as the best paid player in the world, earning over $50 million in the previous 12 months.[14]
He has been married to Victoria Beckham since 1999, and they have four children.[15] Beckham's eldest son Brooklyn currently plays football for Arsenal U16.[16] In February 2014, MLS announced Beckham and a group of investors would own an expansion team in Miami, which would begin play in 2016 or 2017.[17]