Posted on 01/11/2007 8:04:59 AM PST by dogbyte12
ping
that was AWESOME
you confirmed my suspicions
...basically that this would be like Brett Favre spending his golden years in the CFL
(except that Becks was never as good as Favre, of course)
would it be fair to say Beckham is to soccer as Anna Kournikova is to tennis?
Posh sure looks strange in that picture.
So what is this fat cat who's paying him expecting?...that he's going to sell a lot of LA Galaxy jerseys? Whoopidee doo. Anyone who'd buy an MLS jersey probably already has one. Just as anyone who'd be excited by Beckham coming across the pond probably already has Galaxy season tickets.
What's the capacity of LA Galaxy stadium...is he hoping for 20,000 seat sellouts for their what...12 games? How many games do they play?
How much are Galaxy tix going to be now...$80 per seat?
$250 mil is ludicrous.
Is this the same guy who's paying $900 for a butt-painting? (another thread, if anyone saw it)
Maybe the surroundings aren't posh enough for her.
So... You think you can just dump your Chavs on us eh?
Wasn't his fault. I have yet to meet anybody who faulted him. Almost everybody faults the coach- myself included.
He (the coach) played for penalties (a draw) in the last match and everybody who watches football in the whole world knows that penalties are the one thing England simply cannot do. He named to the squad a young 17 year old prodigy striker- Theo Walcot (and this kid might just be the best striker in the world one day)- but never played him even when Michael Owen went out injured and Rooney got red-carded. If he wasn't going to play him, he shouldn't have took him to the tournament. He played a lone striker formation throughout after Owen's injury although he had Peter Crouch on the bench. When he should've been going hell-bent for leather he played it cautious and when he should've been jumping up and down ranting on the sidelines he just sat on the bench with his arms folded.
Nah. Nobody has anything against Becks in Europe. They might envy his lifestyle and celebrity but it was the manager who took the blame and rightly so. He was just so damned stoical even in defeat...
Chavs... aren't they like Skangers? :-P
OK, how about: "Tens of citizens will flock to see the Galaxy play." ;)
It's still a good move for MLS - probably the best possible situation for Beckham, too.
Is this guy overrated or what. He has never won his country the world cup.. then what's all this hoola about ?
$1 million a game aint shabby.
It took some really big dealers to wrap up the $250-million package that will bring soccer star David Beckham to Los Angeles later this year to play for the Galaxy in Major League Soccer.
Key movers in the deal that began to take shape on New Year's Day included AEG President Tim Leiweke, "American Idol" creator Simon Fuller, Creative Arts Agency and executives at German shoe giant Adidas. The supporting cast included MLS owners who recently restructured a salary cap and television networks that are paying millions of dollars for the right to broadcast upcoming MLS games.
Beckham's Galaxy contract is worth about $10 million annually, according to sports, advertising and entertainment industry executives. Beckham, who pitches product for Adidas, Gillette, Motorola and Pepsi-Cola, hopes to earn about $20 million annually from sponsorship deals. Sales of jerseys and other gear could contribute another $10 million, and Beckham reportedly negotiated a profit-sharing plan with the Galaxy and AEG that, depending on the club's finances, could deliver another $10 million annually.
Though AEG couldn't approach Beckham until Jan. 1, the Los Angeles-based sports and entertainment company was able to build upon an existing relationship because Beckham earlier had opened a soccer academy at the Home Depot Center in Carson.
AEG's entertainment division also had done business with 19 Entertainment Inc., a Fuller company that created "American Idol" and had managed the Spice Girls singing group; Beckham's wife, Victoria, is the former Posh Spice.
Leiweke credited CAA partner David "Doc" O'Connor and agent Jeff Frasco for helping to speed the deal along. "Doc, Jeff, Simon and I are all friends," Leiweke said. "This was a huge deal for AEG.... But, if not for them, this deal couldn't get done in 10 days."
Adidas, which outfits MLS teams and Beckham, also was in on the negotiations. The sports marketing giant is betting that the newest MLS star will spark stronger sales in the U.S. AEG also got an assist from other MLS franchise owners who recently agreed to modify a league salary cap so teams could bring in players of Beckham's caliber.
The deal won immediate approval from U.S. television networks that broadcast professional soccer games. In August, ABC/ESPN and Univision signed an eight-year multimedia deal with MLS. ESPN2 will televise 26 regular-season games and three playoff matches. ABC will televise the MLS title game, the season opener and the All-Star game.
Bob Dorfman, executive creative director with San Francisco-based Pickett Advertising, believes advertisers will consider campaigns featuring Beckham and his wife.
"I can easily see a MasterCard spot featuring the Beckhams shopping for furniture to fill their new Hollywood digs," Dorfman said.
Yeah, but overall this is a good thing for MLS. If MLS teams will pay a quarter of a billion dollars for Beckham, they will also be willing to pay significant salaries to other better players as well. It shows that MLS is trying to invest and grow by a significant amount (at least for LA Galaxy). If this continues, we might be able to stop the export of our top players to Europe (and perhaps start importing instead).
Oh lovely. Just what we need, one more metrosexual athelete.
Yikes is right. She would fit right in with the heroin whores here on 10th avenue. All that`s missing is the scabs on the arms.
Actually, people do still consider him to be a decent player.
Last season he made more goals than any other player in La Liga and they weren't all from set-pieces either. He's a hard-working player who won over the Real Madrid fans with his tenacity and determination. Others, like Ronaldo and Roberto Carlos, have fallen out of favour, but Beckham has always been respected in Spain.
Your comments about him being a never-has-been loser are extraordinary.
He has won the English League on numerous occasions and the European Cup, as well as a host of other more minor trophies. He was captain of England for five years, guiding them to the last eight of three tournaments and finishing top in qualifying groups on every occasion. No, he didn't win the World Cup, but then few do. George Best, Feranc Puskas and Johann Cruyff never won it either.
The MLS has just signed a classy 31 year old footballer with a few years left in the tank yet. He'll be an asset to your country and your league.
No, he's not the same player he was when he was 25, but who is?
It never fails to amaze me just how much abuse David Beckham receives. Get off his case and sit back and wait for the football. When he starts pinging 50 yard passes across America, you'll stand up and take notice.
I know all this because I thought he was over-rated as well. Then I went to Madrid and watched him play.
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