LONDON (AP) — David Beckham, the former England soccer captain who has been an ambassador for the U.N. children’s fund for two decades, is to receive a knighthood in next week’s honors list from King Charles III, according to U.K. media reports Friday.
Without citing sources, the BBC said Beckham is set to receive further recognition both for his soccer career, and his contributions to British society.
The knighthood will make Beckham “Sir David” while his wife since 1999, former Spice Girl Victoria Beckham, will become “Lady Beckham.” In 2003, Beckham was awarded the Order of the British Empire, or OBE, for services to soccer. Victoria Beckham got the same honor for services to the fashion industry in a later New Year Honours list.
Honors are awarded twice a year, once at New Year’s, and then in June to mark the king’s birthday. They are mostly made on the recommendation of the government, though the monarch has input too.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s office would not confirm the press reports, as is custom. Buckingham Palace declined to comment. The Associated Press has not been able to independently confirm the award of the knighthood, which was first reported in The Sun tabloid newspaper.
In video footage published by The Sun from the Chelsea Flower Show earlier this month, the king is seen asking Beckham if he “received his 50th birthday present.” The King appeared to say “I’m glad it got to you,” with Beckham responding: “It was incredible, thank you, it was very kind.”
Beckham and the king have crossed paths on numerous occasions, including at state functions. Last year, Beckham became an ambassador for The King’s Foundation, an educational and sustainability charity Charles launched in 1990.
Beckham is the only English soccer player to score at three different World Cups and his illustrious career included the treble-winning campaign of 1999, when Manchester United won the Premier League, the FA Cup and the Champions League.
With 115 appearances for the England national team, Beckham is third in the all-time list. He also captained the side on 59 occasions.
After leaving Manchester United in 2003, Beckham played for Real Madrid, Los Angeles Galaxy and Paris Saint-Germain. He now co-owns the MLS team Inter Miami.
His career wasn’t always a high, though. After the 1998 World Cup in France, Beckham was widely vilified for his petulant kick of Argentina player Diego Simeone, which saw him sent off. Many fans blamed him for England’s exit.
In 2023’s Netflix documentary series “Beckham,” he described the abuse he experienced, which included an effigy of him hanging from a noose outside a London pub.
“I knew it was bad at the time, but going over that whole thing was quite a tough one,” he told the AP.
The four-part documentary series about Beckham’s life and professional career scored him an Emmy in 2024 for outstanding documentary or non-fiction series.
Beckham has been a style icon and celebrity and has been a prominent supporter of charities, including UNICEF, which created “The David Beckham UNICEF Fund” in 2015 to mark a decade’s partnership between the two. Beckham also played a pivotal role in London being awarded the Summer Olympic Games in 2012.
If the knighthood is confirmed, Beckham would join an elite group of British soccer players to have been knighted, including England’s 1966 World Cup winners, Geoff Hurst and Bobby Charlton, and Scotland’s Kenny Dalglish.
