Not too many fans recall that goalkeeper Nick Rimando, born to a Filipino father and Mexican mother, thwarted English sensation David Beckham’s attempt to deliver a Major League Soccer (MLS) title to the Los Angeles Galaxy in the 2009 finals.
Rimando, playing for Real Salt Lake, saved two penalty shots and paved the way for the Utah squad’s 5-4 win over the Galaxy in a shootout after a 1-1 tie in overtime. Beckham scored the first penalty for LA but Landon Donovan missed a goal as his shot sailed over the bar. It was Beckham’s third season and first playoffs with the Galaxy.
Beckham, 36, wasn’t born with a silver spoon in his mouth. His father David was a kitchen fitter and mother Sandra, a hairdresser. But he parlayed his brilliance on the pitch to a successful football career marked by championships with Manchester United in the English Premier League, Real Madrid in the Spanish La Liga and the Galaxy in MLS this past campaign. He’s the only English player to score in three FIFA World Cups and the fifth in World Cup history to score twice from a direct free kick with Pele, Robert Rivelino, Teofilo Cubillas and Bernard Genghini. Beckham missed playing in the 2010 World Cup due to a torn left Achilles tendon.
Today, Beckham’s net worth with wife Victoria Adams of Spice Girls fame is estimated to be the equivalent of about P8.7 Billion. In 2007, he bought a home in Beverly Hills for the equivalent of P783 Million. Beckham is on the final year of his Los Angeles contract stipulating an annual salary of $6.5 Million.
It wasn’t easy sailing for Beckham in his US invasion. Sports Illustrated writer Grant Wahl described his first two years with the Galaxy as “an epic disaster” as the team failed to make it to the playoffs. Beckham suffered an injury-plagued rookie season in 2007 and the next year, the Galaxy was shot full of holes in losing seven in a row, prompting the recruitment of former US national coach Bruce Arena. Wahl ripped the Galaxy for paying Beckham a huge salary when some of his teammates earned as little as $12,900 a year.
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But Beckham wouldn’t be denied his place in history. He led Manchester United and Real Madrid to league titles on the last year of his contracts with both teams. Beckham, honored with an Order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth in 2003, did it again for the Galaxy this season as LA beat Houston, 1-0, in the finals. It wasn’t a dominant performance for Beckham who collected only two goals in 27 games but the victory re-established his legacy as a football superstar and winning tradition. Besides, Beckham ranked second in the MLS with 15 assists.
Whether Beckham will return in a Galaxy jersey next season or not is up in the air. At least two English Premier League teams are after him. The French club Paris Saint-Germain, recently bought by the Qatar Investment Authority, has money to burn and also wants to sign up Beckham. The decision will be based on family concerns. Beckham’s oldest son Brooklyn, 13, whose godfather is pop icon Elton John, plays on the Galaxy’s under-13 academy team and wears No. 23 like his father. The family enjoys the LA lifestyle and may not easily give up living in Southern California. The Beckhams’ other children are Romeo, 9, Cruz, 6, and newly born first daughter Harper Seven.
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“I think David is loyal to us,” said Tim Leiweke, the president of Galaxy owner AEG, quoted by Wahl. “Despite all the rumors and bulls out there about David going to France or the Premier League, David only leaves the Galaxy if David and we decide that. In fact, I believe David will be here again next year. People can make any offer they want. The loyalty he has to this club because of the way we have treated him and stood by him is going to be rewarded if we so choose to continue with David.”
Leiweke said Beckham’s impact on the MLS is resounding. “David is going to get us attention as a league, as a sport and a team and whether it’s good or bad attention, he’s going to take us to the next level,” he continued. “Look at the league today. There are 19 teams (14 when Beckham joined in 2007). The Galaxy is a $100 Million-plus asset. We want to be the first club in the history of soccer in the US, including the New York Cosmos, to do $100 Million of gross revenue a year and join the elite in the rest of the world. We’ve got some years ahead of us to do that but we could never had had that conversation without David Beckham.”
Last night, Filipino fans got a rare look at Beckham and the Galaxy in the exhibition match with the Azkals at the Rizal Memorial. It will go down in Philippine sports history as a milestone not only because of Beckham’s participation but also the appearance of the LA Galaxy as a whole. Alexi Lalas, a former US national soccer player and now a TV analyst, had this description of the Galaxy: “They are a machine – and not like a Ferrari but like a Ford truck, they can get down and dirty but they can also look classic and powerful in the way they go about their business.”