After years of grafting and being the poster boy for all things patriotic and pro-monarchy, David Beckham has finally earned the prestigious honour of a knighthood.
While some British celebrities have declined honours or have been non-committal when it comes to praising the controversial royal family, the former England captain has been flying the flag, supporting King Charles and the crown-wearing gang since, it seems, birth.
‘Growing 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,’ he said in a statement to PA when the news was announced.
He added that he was ‘immensely proud’ of the honour, and was ‘grateful’ for the recognition of his career.
‘I’m so lucky to be able to do the work that I do, and I’m grateful to be recognised for work that gives me so much fulfilment. It will take a little while for the news to sink in, but I’m immensely proud, and it’s such an emotional moment for me to share with my family.’
On the pitch, David has been a living legend for most of his life, earning an OBE in 2003. Off the pitch, he’s been an important advocate for charitable causes.
He’s been a Goodwill Ambassador for Unicef since 2005, a founding member of Malaria No More, and an ambassador for the King’s Foundation, which supports education.
Undoubtedly, these are the real accolades that cemented Beckham’s knighthood.
However, we think there are a few iconic moments from over the years that deserve a special mention and may have encouraged ol’ Charlie boy to finally give our Becks the recognition he’s been craving.
Crying about his love for the royals
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In an interview about the Prince’s Trust Charity, which David has worked with for several years, the footballer discussed his love of the royal family, tearing up and wiping his eyes as he spoke about being a ‘royalist’.
‘I always get emotional talking about anything that I do with our royal family,’ he said.
‘I’ve always been a huge royalist,’ he added, explaining that he grew up in a family that loved and admired the monarchy and ‘everything that came with the royal family.’
He then commented, rather bafflingly, that he is an important part of the royal family, which made his mother extremely proud.
‘She’s so proud of obviously what I’ve done throughout my career, but she’s also proud that I’ve played such an important role within the royal family and the charities they have.’
Now, doesn’t that kind of public devotion deserve a knighthood?
His Golden Balls nickname
Victoria Beckham revealed in 2008 in an interview with Parky (Michael Parkinson) that she called her husband Golden Balls. Unfortunately for David, the nickname stuck.
She joked that people thought she was a ‘miserable cow in high heels who just goes down Bond Street all the time – not that there’s anything wrong with that,’ and that her husband’s reputation was tinged after the 1998 World Cup.
The 1998 incident saw Becks royally ruin England’s chances of winning when he was sent off for kicking an Argentinian footballer. Despite being public enemy number one in the UK for a spell, he managed to win back the affection of the nation.
‘I call him Golden Balls,’ said Victoria, joking about his golden boy status.
‘That’s one of those things I shouldn’t have said,’ she said immediately afterwards as David looked embarrassed and held his head in his hands.
With a golden reputation and apparently balls of gold as opposed to steel, who wouldn’t want to see a Sir Golden Balls?
Queuing to see the Queen
In September 2022, the former professional footballer looked visibly emotional as he waited in line in the queue, appearing to wipe tears from his eyes as he waited his turn to bow his head to the late monarch.
Beckham, 47, joined members of the public in the queue in the early hours of the morning, wearing a flatcap with a dark blazer and tie, a white shirt and a navy coat.
Fans loved that he got into the gargantuan queue in the wee hours and queued with all of us commoners, chatting and mingling with the people around him, and not expecting to queue jump just because of his A-list status.
A move becoming of a People’s prince in our books, Becks.
The viral ‘be honest’ moment
The footballer’s Netflix docuseries, Beckham, released in 2023, contained one of the best TV moments of the year, which was so good it was even nominated for a Bafta.
‘We’d both come from families that worked really hard. Both of our parents worked really hard. We were very working-class,’ said Victoria Beckham to the camera.
Unfortunately, the conversation was overheard by David, who immediately cut in to reveal that his wife was telling a little porkie.
‘Be honest,’ he said. ‘What car did your dad drive you to school in?’