As Manchester United’s golden boy, David Beckham quickly transcended football to become a global celebrity.
He and Spice Girl wife Victoria created Brand Beckham – fusing fame, fashion and football to redefine modern stardom.
“Their brand has always been about control of narrative, image, and legacy,” says Mr Borkowski. “The media didn’t chase them. They gave it a trail to follow – blending scandal with strategy and high-end deals.”
Beckham “made metrosexuality mainstream”, he adds. “He showed working-class lads you could wear nail polish, model for Armani, champion grooming rituals – and still bend a free kick past the keeper at crunch time. All while embodying a very traditional ideal: devoted husband, hands-on dad, family first.”
“I lived my career through the spotlight,” Sir David told BBC Radio 4’s Front Row in 2013. “You have to be a certain person, you have to create a certain person, and you have to be yourself.”
These parallel identities – carefully constructed yet authentic – gave Beckham his unique pull.
While the Beckham family have always been relatively private, Ms Beeching sees David’s 2023 Netflix documentary as a turning point in how the public perceived them.
“The Beckham brand has always been seen as aspirational, not accessible, but since the documentary, there’s been a notable increase in how much the family share on their social media accounts, which puts them closer to being reality stars,” she says.
Ms Beeching says recent news has pulled the family “away from legacy-building and into soap opera territory, which was never their lane”.
The constant rumours about the family’s dynamic have led some fans to take on a “Sherlock Holmes role” – so now, every absence in a photo becomes a hidden theory and every Instagram caption has a sub context.