\u201cGrowing up in east London with parents and grandparents who were so patriotic and proud to be British, I never could have imagined I would receive such a truly humbling honour,\u201d Beckham said in a statement to the PA<\/a> news agency. \u201cTo have played for and captained my country was the greatest privilege of my career and literally a boyhood dream come true.<\/p>\n \u201cOff the pitch, I have been fortunate to have the opportunity to represent Britain around the world and work with incredible organisations that are supporting communities in need and inspiring the next generation.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m so lucky to be able to do the work that I do and I\u2019m grateful to be recognised for work that gives me so much fulfilment.<\/p>\n \u201cIt will take a little while for the news to sink in but I\u2019m immensely proud and it\u2019s such an emotional moment for me to share with my family.\u201d<\/p>\n Beckham\u2019s anger at being passed over for a knighthood in 2013 was revealed in 2017 when his emails were hacked by a company associated with Simon Oliveira, his then-representative. The messages were subsequently published by a variety of European media outlets and showed his frustration at the honours committee. Beckham called them \u201cunappreciative c\u2014-\u201d and insisted he didn\u2019t \u201ccare about being knighted\u201d. Those email exchanges also revealed UK authorities\u2019 concerns over his tax affairs. At the time<\/a>, a spokesperson for Beckham said the emails were \u201chacked\u201d and \u201cdoctored\u201d.<\/p>\n In December, though, Beckham and his wife, Victoria, were invited to join the King and Queen Camilla at Buckingham Palace to mark the state visit of the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani. Beckham was an ambassador for Qatar at the 2022 World Cup<\/a>, a role which attracted controversy due to the human rights record of the Gulf state.<\/p>\n Beckham received an OBE (Order of the British Empire) in 2003 under Queen Elizabeth II and won the World Economic Forum Crystal Award in January for his work on children\u2019s rights, having been a Goodwill Ambassador for UNICEF for 20 years.<\/p>\n Beckham was in Florida on Friday ahead of Inter Miami\u2019s Club World Cup opener this weekend (Chris Arjoon\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n Though he was born in the east end of London, Beckham was part of Manchester United\u2019s \u2018Class of 92\u2019 group of academy players \u2014 including the Neville brothers, Nicky Butt, Paul Scholes and Ryan Giggs \u2014 which help the club win the first ever English treble of the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League in the same season in 1998-99.<\/p>\n Beckham went on to win 19 major trophies over his career with United, Madrid, LA Galaxy, AC Milan and Paris Saint-Germain. He also captained England for six years and won 115 caps for his country, the third-most of any men\u2019s player. Beckham\u2019s high point for his country was arguably his last-minute free kick against Greece at Old Trafford in 2001 to secure qualification to the 2002 World Cup, while a notable low came after he was sent off at the 1998 World Cup and the subsequent media storm which followed.<\/p>\n Beckham was the first England men\u2019s player to score at three World Cups and the first Englishman to play 100 Champions League games.<\/p>\n Since retiring in 2013, Beckham has kept close ties with the game as part of the Class of 92 group that bought Salford City in 2014. Beckham joined that investment group five years later, and he and Gary Neville led a new consortium which took full control of the League Two club in May<\/a>.<\/p>\n As part of the deal that saw Beckham join the Galaxy in 2007, the Englishman was given the option to own an expansion franchise in MLS<\/a>. He announced his intention to bring a team back to Miami in 2014, and led a group which exercised the option to add an expansion franchise for the pre-agreed fee of $25million. Inter Miami first joined the MLS in 2020 and is valued at $1.2billion by Forbes<\/a>.<\/p>\n (Top photo: Clive Brunskill\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n![\"Beckham](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/beckham-messi-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n\n<\/blockquote>\n