David Beckham Speech: It’s Not Just a Game

Watch this famous David Beckham Speech. He’s an English former professional footballer, the current president of Inter Miami CF and co-owner of Salford City. He played for Manchester United, Preston North End, Real Madrid, Milan, LA Galaxy, Paris Saint-Germain and the England national team, for which he held the appearance record for an outfield player until 2016. Enjoy our Speeches with big English subtitles and keep your English learning journey.

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David Beckham Quote:

“The only time you run out of chances is when you stop taking them.” David Beckham

David Beckham full TRANSCRIPT:

“MARVIN CHOW: Ladies and gentlemen, ladies and gentlemen, please welcome Mr. David Beckham.

MARVIN CHOW: Nice to see you, Sir. How are you? Wave.

DAVID BECKHAM: Morning.

MARVIN CHOW: Have a seat. Have a seat. Welcome. Welcome to Google. So let’s kick off, no pun intended, with a little soccer. Or, for our international friends, football. You know, you David, you really have had a global soccer career. I mean, you joined Manchester United at the young age of 17. You won 9 major trophies in 11 years there. Very impressive. You then joined Real Madrid where you won another trophy, and then since 2007, you’ve been here in the U.S. playing for the LA Galaxy, where last year you won yet another trophy. And I think that puts you in a very rare group of trifecta winners of three trophies on three different countries. So congratulations.

DAVID BECKHAM: Thank you very much.

MARVIN CHOW: And then obviously, while preparing to meet you last night, I read even more news last night. The big news that you’ve decided to stay here in the U.S. and continue to play for the U.S., the LA Galaxy. Congratulations. And I think we’re excited that you chose Google as a place to come talk to your fans and the rest of the world about that news. So why don’t we start there? Why don’t you tell us a little bit about that decision to stay with the Galaxy.

DAVID BECKHAM: Well, good morning, first of all. I’m excited to be here. To be part of this is exciting for me, and to be here with you all and everyone else watching around the world, it’s exciting. Google’s one of the biggest companies in the world. So I’m honored to be here today. My decision, obviously, throughout my career has always been about my family, about my career, about my footballing career. And I’ve been lucky to have played over the years with some of the biggest clubs in the world, some of the best players in the world. And it’s been exciting. I’ve been lucky enough to have been successful in many different clubs that I’ve played for. And professionally, coming to the U.S. was something that I was excited about. It was a challenge. It was a new challenge. I played in Europe. I’d won everything that I possibly could in Europe, and I wanted a new challenge.

MARVIN CHOW: When you conquer Europe, it’s definitely the next–

DAVID BECKHAM: Like I said, I was very lucky in my career.

MARVIN CHOW: You are.

DAVID BECKHAM: So then, obviously, coming to America was an exciting thing for me, and I’ve had a great five years. I met a lot of good people, a lot of great fans around the world, traveled around America, played in different parts of America, which I’d never played in before, and it’s been exciting. So this championship at the end of this year was one of the most satisfying in my career, I must admit. To have been here for the time that I’ve been here, to reach the goals that I’d reached off the field, with raising the popularity of the game. I’d reached those goals. The only goal that I hadn’t reached was a championship with the Galaxy, which is the main reason why I came to America and came to the Galaxy as a franchise. So that was missing, but now it’s not.

MARVIN CHOW: Congratulations.

DAVID BECKHAM: But obviously, with the new contract now, it was a decision that I didn’t take lightly because I obviously had other offers from other clubs around the world. And at 36 years old you don’t expect to still get these offers. So that was nice. But it was all about where I felt the future was going for the game here in the U.S., and also where my family was happiest. And my family is happiest here at the moment. We love living in LA. We love living in America. We’ve adapted the culture, we’ve adapted everything that this country has, and we enjoy that. So I’m going to continue to enjoy playing soccer here, and my family will continue to enjoy it.

MARVIN CHOW: Well, speaking of, kind of away from the Galaxy– I saw when you came in 2007, you made a very public statement that you wanted to help grow the game of soccer in the U.S. Can you talk a little bit about how that’s going and some areas around growing the game here?

DAVID BECKHAM: Well that’s the thing. It’s one of the reasons why I came to this country. It’s because, for me, soccer is the number one sport around the world apart from America. Don’t get me wrong, the other sports, American football, basketball, baseball, they’re all great sports and have great athletes in these sports. But the number one game in the world is soccer. So I want to get soccer to a different level in this country. And I think that we’ve done that in the last– I’ve felt it change in the last couple of years. And that’s why I didn’t want to walk away from it because I felt the change. And to walk away at this point would be disappointing because I’ve been part of that growth, and I want to continue to be part of that growth. So it’s an exciting time. And it’s great for the family as well, great for the family to be here.

MARVIN CHOW: Well, speaking of the family, I think we’ve all read how important family is to you. So what role did Victoria and the kids have in decision, in making this decision?

DAVID BECKHAM: I mean, they have the final answer. It’s as simple as that. That sounded wrong. No, obviously, when you’re married, when you have children, your priorities totally change. 10 years ago, when I was playing at Manchester United, at Real Madrid– obviously, we were married, but it was a lot easier for us to make decisions based on our careers. Whereas, we’ve got three amazing boys now and a little girl that we have to look after, and it’s all about them. So our priorities are about our children. But like I said, in the question before, the growth of the game is growing. And to see when I first arrived there’d be 12 teams in the league, now there’s 19. There are stadiums being built around America solely for soccer, which is a big thing. And that’s the exiting part of why and one of the reasons why I wanted to stay.

MARVIN CHOW: Yeah, well I think the impact of your presence on the game has been very clear over the last five years. I think one of the other questions that I’m sure is on a lot of people’s minds with this decision is really, why come to Google to tell the world and talk to your fans?

DAVID BECKHAM: Why not? Why not?

MARVIN CHOW: So simple.

DAVID BECKHAM: Like I said, it’s one of the biggest companies in the world, and it reaches so many millions of people. And I felt that it’s something that you always see when you open your computer.

MARVIN CHOW: We like that.

DAVID BECKHAM: And something I was really excited about. So like I said, I’m honored to be here with everyone, and thanks for coming out because there’s a lot of you. Thank you.

MARVIN CHOW: So in getting ready for this visit we saw that you posted a video callout for questions on YouTube, which is fantastic. And I’d say from that video we’ve collected tons of questions. We’ve gone through them and we’ve curated them, and obviously we’ll go through some of those today. I think, just also so you know, your Google following is also very strong. Obviously, you can see the people here in Charlie’s, but in addition to this group there are about 26 other offices from around the world dialed in to watch this and ask you questions as well. And I think, if it weren’t so late in some of the other parts of the world, we’d have even more than that. So congratulations on building a following here at Google as well. So let’s dig in to some of the questions right away. We’ll start with football. Tou Moo Yee from California wants to know, what is the biggest difference between playing football in America versus Europe?

DAVID BECKHAM: I mean, there’s not a huge amount of difference. One of the biggest differences I’d say is just the travel. It’s literally the travel. In Europe we only have to travel about an hour to a game, or two hours at the most. Whereas, when we play East Coast and we’re playing in New York, it’s a 5, 5 and 1/2 hour journey. So that’s a big difference but on the field, the level of play has definitely gone up in the last three or four years. And I think that it’s at a stage now where this game is starting to attract the interest of some big names and big players in Europe. And I think there has to be a certain change with some of the things that goes on throughout the league. But I think it’s a league now, where European teams, big European teams, are coming over for their pre-seasons and they’re playing against us. So five years ago, the Galaxy had been heard of but I think now, with the interest of the players that have come over, such as Robbie Keane and obviously London Donovan as a U.S. star, we’ve had that interest and it’s exciting to be part of.

MARVIN CHOW: Yeah, I think it must great to see the growth, see the change year over year, and the speed and the power of the players.

DAVID BECKHAM: I think that’s what you always want. You want to see something grow. If you sit still so long– you know this better than anyone with Google– if you sit there too long then things change around you. And to see the growth, to see the change, I’m proud to be part of that.

MARVIN CHOW: That’s great. Another question. Mahin Zarra asks, what is the first thing you do, think, or notice when you step onto the field initially?

DAVID BECKHAM: I think just the excitement. I’m still– I’m 36 years old, and every time I step on the field I’m like a little kid. And I know once that changes then that’s when I’ll feel I’ll have to stop playing. But until that changes, I’m going to continue to play as long as possible and as long as teams keep offering me new contracts.

MARVIN CHOW: But it seems like that love of the game, that childhood joy of just playing the game, is what drives you.

DAVID BECKHAM: I’ve always been driven. Even at a young age, all I ever wanted to do was become a footballer or soccer star. And that was my only ambition. I know it’s different these days with kids. There’s obviously this fame, this fortune. And it might be easy for me to say that because, obviously, I’ve done very well at the game, but I’d still be playing this game even if I wasn’t being paid for it. Not that I don’t want to be paid for it, but I still would be playing this sport.

MARVIN CHOW: Very good. Very good. Another question. Christina Greenwood asks, do you ever listen to music before a soccer game to kind of get yourself pumped up?

DAVID BECKHAM: Always.

MARVIN CHOW: Always? The Spice Girls?

DAVID BECKHAM: Spice Girls, of course. I mean, one of them always gets me going before a game.

MARVIN CHOW: Everybody. I think, who doesn’t?

DAVID BECKHAM: Always. Yeah, so no, Spice Girls is not on the playlist. It’s on my iPod but it’s not on the playlist. That’s for a different time with the kids. But no, I always listen to music. I’m a huge Jay-Z fan.

MARVIN CHOW: Excellent.

DAVID BECKHAM: Huge Stone Roses fan, as well, who are getting back together in June. Just plugging them. And no, at different clubs it’s strange. Before games we always listen to music, but there are certain managers at certain clubs that don’t like music before a game in the change room which, in the end, most players end up listening with their headsets.

MARVIN CHOW: That’s good. Min Koh wants you to give up the secret. How do you train for the perfect Beckham kick? We’ve seen it. How does it happen?

DAVID BECKHAM: I mean, it’s just that people have asked me that over the years. How do I curl the ball? Or how do I bend the ball? And it’s something that just happened. It’s not something that I thought, OK, I want to bend the ball better than anyone else so I’m going to kick the ball in this certain way. I just worked on my striking of the ball. I just practiced every day. It’s something that I’ve done from a very young age. Even after every training session, I’d take balls on my own and just go and kick and try and find new ways of getting the ball in the net without anyone touching it. I’ve been lucky enough to have done that over the years with the way I kick the ball, and I know that it’s a unique style. And I know it’s a unique style just because my back hurts a little bit more than it did when I was 15 years old. But it’s something that I practice, of course. That’s one thing I tell kids. Unless you practice you’re never going to get better at something.

MARVIN CHOW: Well I think there’s not a goal keeper in the world who is not terrified when you line up for that free kick. So whatever you’re doing, keep doing it.

DAVID BECKHAM: I’ll try.

MARVIN CHOW: And so we have a couple questions live from London, actually, from our office in London, which we wanted to have your homeland people–

DAVID BECKHAM: Good evening.

MARVIN CHOW: –ask you. Why don’t you go ahead? MALE SPEAKER: Hi David.

DAVID BECKHAM: How you doing? MALE SPEAKER: My question is, who’s more likely to win a World Cup in the future, England or the USA?

DAVID BECKHAM: Oh my God. That’s a terrible question to ask me while I’m set here. I’m going to have to say England. I’m really sorry. I’m sorry. I’ve got a lot of respect for the U.S. players and the U.S. team, and they’ve got some very talented players. But I believe, at some point, England are going to win a World Cup. Because we have got a lot of talented players in our country, and we’re very passionate, and it’s where the game began. So for me, definitely, I think England are going to win a World Cup at some point.

MARVIN CHOW: America’s just pacing themselves.

DAVID BECKHAM: The U.S. is a few years behind us, but a few years after.

MARVIN CHOW: Exactly. JT? JT: Hi David. This is JT over in London.

DAVID BECKHAM: Morning, afternoon, evening whatever it is. JT: Morning. Well yeah, evening here. So I’ve seen you play a couple of times. One of them was a tsunami charity game you played in Barcelona with loads of superstars. And I just wanted to know who was the greatest player you played with or against?

DAVID BECKHAM: OK. Again, I’ve been lucky enough over the years to have played with some of the best players in the world. Obviously, being at Manchester United, being at Real Madrid, being at AC Milan, these are three of the biggest clubs in the world. So, obviously, there’s some great players there. Being able to play with Eric Cantona, I think, that was a great thing. He’s a Manchester United player. Being able to play with a player, Bryan Robson, that was my hero and I wanted to emulate. But I think the best player I’ve ever played with is Zidane. He’s a player with a lot of passion, a lot of skill, and he’s not just an amazing player, he’s a great person as well. The hardest player to have played against was Roberto Carlos, who’s now actually one of my best friends. But even when I didn’t know him as well as I do now, he used to kick the hell out of me, the whole game. But he had this cheeky smile which– you couldn’t hate him in any way possible. But he’s definitely the most, the toughest, player I’ve played against.

MARVIN CHOW: Claudine. CLAUDINE: Hey David. So my question is, if LA Galaxy were to play in the English premiere league, how would they stack up against the competition?

DAVID BECKHAM: We’d win it. [UNINTELLIGIBLE] was that. I think the Galaxy have been great in the last two years. We’ve been really successful with, obviously, being close to winning the championship over the last few years. But then, obviously this year winning the championship, we’ve got a lot of good young players coming through. Players that teams in Europe are interested in. So I think we’d do well in the premiership. It’d be interesting.

MARVIN CHOW: I think you never know. That’s the beauty of the game. I mean, I think, you work hard, you train hard.

DAVID BECKHAM: I mean, that’s what soccer’s all about. It’s all about upsets. It’s all about teams that you don’t think are as good as other teams going in and beating them. That’s what the FA Cup is all about in England. Lower league teams go in and they beat some of the best premiership teams in England. So that’s what it’s all about. But I think we’d do well over there.

MARVIN CHOW: That’s good. Maybe one day.

DAVID BECKHAM: It’s might be a bit cold for a few players in December but we’d do well.

MARVIN CHOW: That’s great. JT mentioned the charity game that you played, and I think we’ve seen you do a lot of philanthropic work throughout your career. I think we touched on it in the UNICEF work in the highlight video, and recently we saw that you were in Afghanistan visiting some troops there. Can you tell us a little bit about what that trip was and what you did there?

DAVID BECKHAM: I mean, I know it sounds kind of a cliche, but charities are one of my biggest passions. I’ve been lucky enough to be involved with UNICEF as an ambassador, and that’s something that I’m very proud of. But I want to do more. Obviously, with my job, with my travel it’s very difficult to go into the field and to do different things, but I’ve been able to go to places like Sierra Leone. And going places like that, and seeing the change that UNICEF are making to so many people around the world, that’s one of my biggest passions. That’s why when people say to me, after my career am I going to go into coaching? I need to be passionate about something that I’m going to go into. And coaching, I love coaching kids, but I’d prefer to go into the field and see the kids in Sierra Leone or in different parts of Africa and around the world and coach them because it’s making a huge difference. Going to Afghanistan was something that I’d always wanted to do to see the troops, of course. When I ruptured my Achilles two years ago, I had some time off, obviously. And I thought OK, I need to put that to do something good, and I had the chance to go to Afghanistan. It was a secret at the time but then, obviously, by the time I got there it was out. But it was a huge thing. The job the troops do over there in Afghanistan is really incredible to see. The conditions that they work under, they’re putting their lives at risk every single day. And it must be gut-wrenching for their families to see their loved ones, brothers, sisters, sons, daughters. It’s so many different levels that it’s difficult. To go to Afghanistan was one of the best things I’ve done in my life.

MARVIN CHOW: Well I think it must be. I mean, with your work with UNICEF since 2005, it must be amazing to see, you as an international football star, how the game can bring such joy or change people’s lives in these kids all around the world.

DAVID BECKHAM: That’s what’s great about soccer. I’ve said it so many times, that when I was in Sierra Leone, these kids are walking about with literally no clothes on. But you arrive, you put a soccer ball in front of them, they play like my kids play. And that’s what soccer can do for you and do for kids and do for families. For that 90 minutes, you’re driving along the street and like I said, there’s kids with no clothes on and running around with no shoes on. And then you look over and then kids are watching premiership games on the side of the street. It can change people’s lives. It can, for that 90 minutes of a game, it takes them away from the life they’ve got every single day. And that is the power of soccer. It’s the power of sports. It’s something that’s one of the reasons why I love being involved in sports.

MARVIN CHOW: It is amazing. So moving on a little bit, as we looked through all the questions that we got coming to you, I think unsurprisingly, there were a lot of questions from people who are curious about your personal life. I think, when you marry a Spice Girl, I guess that happens.

DAVID BECKHAM: Yes, it does.

MARVIN CHOW: But I think, before we get to all of those, one of the more overarching questions that everyone had and everyone wants to know, what was it like to be at the wedding of the decade? The royal wedding last April, what was it like to be there?

DAVID BECKHAM: I mean, we had to pinch ourselves when we got the invite. I’ve become friends with Prince William and he’s a great guy. And obviously, Harry as well. And I was brought up around the royal family to love the royal family. My grandparents were big royalists. And so we were brought up to love the royal family. And I think when, obviously, Princess Di was around, the love for her and for the royal family was incredible. And she was loved by millions and millions of people, not just in our country. And then obviously, you watch the lives of William and Harry, and you see everything about them, and it’s kind of like the Truman Show. They’re growing and growing and doing different things and being part of different charities, and growing up from young boys to young men and to grown men. And it makes you proud to be English to see that happen. You watch their lives. You watch what they’ve been through, and then you watch them grow into the people that they are today. And they’re very special people. The royal wedding was a huge thing for our country. To have a celebration like that, it was very special. It gave our country a huge lift at the time, and it’s continued to do that. But being at the royal wedding was incredible.

MARVIN CHOW: Any stories? Any favorite parts?

DAVID BECKHAM: I mean, one of the best things about it for my wife, she was eight months pregnant and she was worried about where we were going to be sitting, as she needed to be as close to the restroom as possible. And our seat was perfect because we could see, obviously, William and Kate walk in. But then, obviously, Victoria could then– she was like five steps away from the restroom, which was perfect. So it was an amazing day, and I’m proud to be a part of that as an Englishman.

MARVIN CHOW: That’s great. Well, speaking of Victoria and being pregnant, Nur Ikisi has a question about Harper. The question is, has Harper spoken her first word yet? What was it? And if not, are there any playful competitions between you and Victoria to see if she’ll say mommy or daddy first?

DAVID BECKHAM: I mean, I think naturally the first word is going to be mama. And she’s close to it already. She’s saying a few things, but I’ve obviously got three amazing boys. And with boys– I’m sure people that have children know, or people who have been around children know– with boys you can throw them up. They drop and they get up and they just run around. And with boys it’s like that. But it’s obviously my first experience of having a little girl. And still, I’m changing her diaper and I’m thinking, I can’t believe I’ve got a girl. So everything about her is feminine. The way she moves, the way she eats, the way she smiles, the way she looks– you know, everything about her is feminine. And I know it sounds obvious, but it’s an amazing thing having a little girl in the family now after having three boys. But the best thing about it is she’s got three older brothers.

MARVIN CHOW: Well I have to say she–

DAVID BECKHAM: And a dad.

MARVIN CHOW: –I have to say she is an impeccable dresser from what I’ve seen.

DAVID BECKHAM: Her wardrobe is ridiculous already. I’m glad I got a two-year contract.

MARVIN CHOW: Very good. Well, staying with that, I mean, obviously, with three boys and now a girl and Victoria, Andreas Rubio Barigga asks, how do you keep the balance between work and family? Obviously, you’ve got a hectic life around the world. What’s that like?

DAVID BECKHAM: I mean, obviously, as a family we’re very busy. As a couple we’re very busy. Victoria’s got a collection that is, obviously, doing unbelievably well. But there’s a lot of pressure that comes with that, obviously. I’m working every day. I play and train every day, so it’s difficult. But like I said before, our number one priority is our children and our family. Nothing else gets in the way of that. When I’m away, Victoria’s at home with the boys and Harper. When she’s away, vice versa. So we’re very hands-on parents. I take the kids to school every day. I pick them up every day. We go to Taekwondo. We go to soccer. We got so many things that we do with the kids. And like I said, we’re very hands-on parents. So our lives, our busy lives don’t affect the children in any way. But the children understand that we work very hard as well. We’ve got a very good balance there.

MARVIN CHOW: It’s amazing to see people as busy and hectic as you and Victoria can still take your kids to Taekwondo and be as hands-on. I think it’s–

DAVID BECKHAM: I mean, it sets the kids up for life, I think, the way you are with them at a very young age, and we’ve got very special kids.

MARVIN CHOW: Earlier you were talking about, obviously, the travel with the Galaxy, and you’ve lived in Italy, Spain, the UK. Carolina Ramos asks, where is your favorite place in the world?

DAVID BECKHAM: Favorite place in the world? I would have to say– funnily enough, I love Paris as a city, funnily enough. And that was, obviously, one of the offers that I got to go and play there. But I love Paris. As a city it’s very romantic. It’s this amazing culture, amazing food and wine. But I’m very proud to be English, and London– there’s not many better places in the world than London.

MARVIN CHOW: Very good. I’m sure our London Googlers will be very happy to hear that.

DAVID BECKHAM: I hope so.

MARVIN CHOW: So while we’re on the personal life topic stuff, I have to say, I promised some fellow coworkers I would ask you this question. Please don’t be embarrassed. But I think a lot of people are interested in what’s up with the new underwear campaign.

DAVID BECKHAM: I knew this was coming.

MARVIN CHOW: You know, I mean, how big is it? I heard Superbowl ad. I mean, how big is this thing going to get?

DAVID BECKHAM: Another pun.

DAVID BECKHAM: I mean, sorry. I need some water. Obviously, I was part of Armani, a campaign for a couple of years. And that was a huge success. And then, I was interested in doing something along the lines with my own range of underwear and body wear. So I got together with a few people and part of my team and we designed and made everything. And we had the product already to go. And then, H&M; came in and they said look, we can make this better for you, and they did. They’re taking it to 1,800 stores, 40 different countries, and it’s something that I could’ve– probably it would have taken a few years, but it wouldn’t have reached that level of distribution. So I’m very proud of it. The pictures are good, which I’m happy about. The product looks great.

MARVIN CHOW: That’s the most important, of course.

DAVID BECKHAM: So that’s exciting. I’m launching on February 1st, so it’s going to be exciting. That’s in London.

MARVIN CHOW: So Superbowl ad? No? Can you say?

DAVID BECKHAM: There’s a Superbowl ad, which is very exciting because the amount of people that watch the Superbowl, actually, is going to see the advert.

MARVIN CHOW: The worlds of football colliding.

DAVID BECKHAM: Which I just thought about.

MARVIN CHOW: Very good. Very good. A couple more questions on the personal side. Ntiaz Adjaz asks, I was wondering, are you considering starring in a film with Tom Cruise?

DAVID BECKHAM: I would love to star in a film with Tom Cruise. Who wouldn’t? People have asked me over the years, especially when I first moved to LA, they were like, he’s obviously going over to become an actor. And I can’t act. It’s as simple as that. It’s something that I’ve never done. I’ve been involved with, obviously, adverts and different– I was involved in a couple of movies that were about soccer. But not major parts. Not much talking involved. So that was great. But who knows? Something might happen in the future that someone comes up to me and says you know, we want you to play this person and maybe it will happen. But I don’t think so. It’s not something that’s an ambition of mine.

MARVIN CHOW: You heard it here first. Something might happen in the future.

DAVID BECKHAM: Exactly. Never say never.

MARVIN CHOW: Never say never. Because you guys are neighbors, right? You live near.

DAVID BECKHAM: Yeah, we live five minutes away.

MARVIN CHOW: Five minutes away. So no banter around the recycling bin?

DAVID BECKHAM: There’s banter. But not banter that I could say live on Google.

MARVIN CHOW: Gotcha. Very good. Very good. One more question on this. Deena Koh asks, are you feeling nervous about your first Google+ hangout?

DAVID BECKHAM: I’m not nervous. I’m excited. being here today, I was excited. I woke up at 6 o’clock this morning. Gave the kids breakfast just before I left and I was excited about it. It’s something that I was really looking forward to. So not nervous.

MARVIN CHOW: That’s good. I think–

DAVID BECKHAM: Why? Should I be?

MARVIN CHOW: No. I think– I think you’re doing fine. I think afterwards it will be easy. I mean, it’s just video conferencing with a bunch of your fans, talking face to face. It seems like something you’d really enjoy.

DAVID BECKHAM: It should be fun, then.

MARVIN CHOW: And for those of you who would like to watch that afterwards, David will be talking with some fans at 10:30 Pacific Time, right here on his Google+ profile. So I think now, we’re going to take some questions from Googlers around the world. I think we’ll take a couple questions live from here in the audience, and some preselected questions. So any Googler that has a question, please begin lining up. But we’ll start with a question from Michael Complidger from London. And he wants to know, did you have a role model as a child, and who was it?

DAVID BECKHAM: I had a role model in football. In soccer, sorry. That was Bryan Robson. He used to play for Manchester United. He was captain of Manchester United. He was captain of England. He wore the number seven for Manchester United and England, and everything that he did I wanted to do and become and do exactly what he was like as a player. And I was lucky because I wore number seven for Manchester United, wore number seven for England, and captained England and Manchester United. So I was very lucky to have done that. So he was a role model that I looked up to.

MARVIN CHOW: Why don’t we take a live question over here?

AUDIENCE: Hi David. With everything that you’ve accomplished in your career and your life in general, what would you say is the most meaningful accomplishment that you’ve had?

DAVID BECKHAM: My family. My family is–

DAVID BECKHAM: Aw. It really is. Obviously, I’ve done a lot in my career and I’ve been able to be successful in different countries and different teams and different leagues. And I’m very proud of that, but my proudest possession is my family.

MARVIN CHOW: Why don’t we take one on this side?

AUDIENCE: Hi David. I wonder if you could talk a bit about the London Olympics. Obviously, you were involved in the bid at the time. So are you hoping for a place in Team GB and what would it mean to you to play at the Olympics?

DAVID BECKHAM: I mean, it’s exciting for our country to host one of the biggest sporting events in the world. I think it’s really exciting. I think the buzz around England and around London, especially around East London, where obviously, I was brought up, it’s exciting. So yes, I would love to be part of Team GB. I’ve never been involved in an Olympics, and when the team came to me and said, we want you to be involved in the bid to get the Olympics to our country, into London, I wasn’t skeptical. But I was kind of nervous because I’m not an athlete that has performed in the Olympics. So I was worried what I was going to bring to the table, and what I was going to do to help bring it to our country. But to be there and to be part of a successful bid to bring it to London, I was very proud. It’s one of the proudest moments that I’ve been involved in. Especially, to be sat there one side and then, the Paris side was sat at the other side, and all the media, actually, had moved to in front of the Paris team. So we all of a sudden got worried, and then we expected Paris to be called out. And then London came out, and it was an exciting time. It’s going to be an amazing game. We’re going to make it proud.

MARVIN CHOW: That’s great. We have a question from Anushe Ganda from London. And going back to the proudest moment– in your footballing career so far, what would be the proudest moment?

DAVID BECKHAM: Proudest moment in my footballing career? It would have to be winning The Treble for Manchester United. The year ’99 was a great year. I got married, I had my first son, and we won The Treble. So it was a big year.

MARVIN CHOW: We’ll take a question on this side.

AUDIENCE: Hi David. Since moving to California, what’s the funniest misunderstanding you or Victoria have had because of your accent?

DAVID BECKHAM: I’m not sure we’ve had a funnier one then as our children had the other day. We were sat there in the kitchen. Well, in our first year, and Brooklyn was writing on a piece of paper or drawing or doing some sketching, and he said, Daddy, I need some rubbers. And I started looking around and I looked over and we had a couple of friends there from the U.S. and they looked in shock. And I didn’t understand it at the time but he now calls them erasers, anyway.

MARVIN CHOW: That is awesome. We’ll take one on this side.

AUDIENCE: Hi David. Thank you for coming. Actually I don’t have an accent. I just really like yours.

DAVID BECKHAM: That’s a great accents.
AUDIENCE: Thanks. Yeah, so thanks for coming. I’m wondering, after today’s hangout, do you have plans on how you’d like to use hangouts in the future, in terms of engaging with your fans all over the world?

DAVID BECKHAM: Well, I’m hoping it goes well. Then, there will definitely be more. I think– this is the first time I’ve done it, so it’s exciting to be able to hang out with fans that have supported me over the years and throughout my career. It’s special, and obviously it gives them a chance to ask me questions that they’ve, obviously, never been able to. So I’m excited and hopefully there’ll be more.

AUDIENCE: Can I get a quick picture with you?

DAVID BECKHAM: Of course, you can.

MARVIN CHOW: Oh, it’s starting again.

AUDIENCE: You look handsome by the way.

DAVID BECKHAM: Thank you. You look very lovely.

MARVIN CHOW: All right, ready? 1, 2, 3, cheese. There you go.

AUDIENCE: Thank you.

DAVID BECKHAM: No problem. Nice to meet you.

MARVIN CHOW: Thank you for coming. Thank you David. Back to the questions. Darminder Singh from the San Francisco office asks about, throughout your career you played against many teams. Which particular team or set of players has left you in awe? I think you talked about players, but maybe you could talk a little bit more on the team side that you’ve played against.

DAVID BECKHAM: I think teams that I’ve played against that have left me in awe– I’d have to say the Barcelona team. Every time you come up against the Barcelona team, they play the game in such a great way. But I think the one team that I played against that were amazing, it was where Ronaldo, the Brazilian player, got a standing ovation from the Manchester United fans. And that team, watching that team, the way they played, for me- it left you kind of in awe of the players, of the setup, of them as a club, and the players that played there. They had Zidane, Raul, Roberto, Carlos, Ronaldo. Little did I know I’d be playing with them the season after. So that was exciting. But they’re definitely the team I was in awe of.

MARVIN CHOW: That’s great. That’s great. Why don’t we take a question on this side.

AUDIENCE: Your wife’s been known to wear some pretty ridiculously tall shoes. I was wondering what your opinion is on your wife’s footwear.

DAVID BECKHAM: I think taller the better. Put it this way, I’ve not worn them. She said over the years that I wore her underwear, for some unknown reason. She said that live on TV, by the way, which is not true. But the shoes are great. I love a pair of high heels on a lady. I like them.

MARVIN CHOW: Another high heel question on this side or a different question?

AUDIENCE: Hi David. I have a question. So if you were to pick a team to beat, let’s say, Barcelona, so which one do you want to choose? And do you already have some ideas to beat them?

DAVID BECKHAM: I think to come up against a Barcelona team is exciting. You can never be worried about playing against a team. As great as Barcelona are, as great as Real Madrid and Manchester United are, we’re a team that’s growing. And we’ve got some very good young players in our team. And we’ve been able, like I said earlier about the interest in this league and our team around the world, we’ve had some of the biggest players in the biggest teams come over and want to play against us in preseason games. So we’ve come up against AC Milan, Barcelona, Real Madrid. I was going to say Manchester City but– we’ve come up against some great teams and it’s great to have that interest. So you should never be worried about who you’re going to play against.

MARVIN CHOW: We’ll take one final question over here and then I’ll—

AUDIENCE: One more, please?

AUDIENCE: Thanks for coming, David. I know you’ve been around the league. You’ve been around various different leagues. Where would you like to finish your soccer career at? Would you like to go back to Manchester United? Do you want to stay in America? Or, do you want to tackle a league that you’ve never been to?

DAVID BECKHAM: I mean, my next birthday in May I’ll be 37.

AUDIENCE: Still really young. It’s really young.

DAVID BECKHAM: In soccer years it’s not so young.

AUDIENCE: But in Beckham years it’s really young.

DAVID BECKHAM: In life it’s young. And I still feel young. So I’ll continue to play the game as long as can. I love it. Every single day I enjoy going to training. I enjoy playing in games. I enjoy being part of a team. And my contract’s now for two years, so it will take me up to almost 39, almost. And then, we’ll see. I think people expected me to move away from the Galaxy or retire at the end of this year. So I’m excited about these next couple of years, but we’ll see what happens in the future.

MARVIN CHOW: We do actually have a shirt for you. I’m not going to ask you to autograph it, but we do have a Google Beckham track jacket which we would like to present to you. Thank you very much.

DAVID BECKHAM: Thank you. Thank you.

MARVIN CHOW: We definitely want to thank you for coming. I think in addition to the track jacket, all the Googlers here in the audience, please know that there’s a Google+ David Beckham t-shirt for everyone here. It will be available in Benghazi in Building 43 from now until 11:00 AM. I don’t think David can sign all of them. So please be understanding around that. But please enjoy your free t-shirt. For those of you on the live stream and for those of you that have more questions, please feel free to join David at 10:30 at a hangout on his Google+ profile. Thank you very much, David. We really appreciate it. It was fantastic. It was really appreciated.

DAVID BECKHAM: Thank you.[/read]

David Beckham Speech

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