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Beckham 'No Plans To Retire' From Football

8:16pm UK, Tuesday 20 November 2012

Former England captain David Beckham announces he is leaving LA Galaxy - but says he has one last challenge ahead.

David Beckham has confirmed he will be leaving LA Galaxy next month - but he has no plans to retire.

The former England captain says his final game for the team will be the Major League Soccer (MLS) cup final on December 1.

Speaking to reporters, the 37-year-old has not said where he will be moving to.

"Retirement is not something I'm thinking of yet. I still feel I have something left in me. I'd like to take on another challenge but what that will be yet, I don’t know.

"My focus is solely on the final in ten days, then we have the tour with the Galaxy then after that I'll sit down with my family.

"There will be a number of exciting opportunities on the table and I'll make the decision after discussing it with them."

The move will end an eventful career in MLS which saw the midfielder become the face of a new era for the sport in North America.

His final game will take place at the Galaxy's own Home Depot Centre, where he arrived on the American stage as the first 'Designated Player' in MLS in 2007. The title is a rule which allowed clubs to sign outside of the league's strict salary cap.

"In my time here I have seen the popularity of the game grow every year. I've been fortunate to win trophies, but more important to me has been the fantastic reception I've had from fans in LA and across the States," said Beckham.

"Soccer's potential has no limits in this wonderful country and I want to always be part of growing it."

Beckham has struggled with injuries of late, missing almost two months of action before this month's play-offs, and pundits say it is hard to imagine him being recruited by a top European team.

Melbourne Heart chief executive Scott Munn told Sky News his club have put in a bid to bring 'Brand Beckham' to Australia's second largest city.

And "The race is on", was posted on the official Perth Glory Twitter account.

However, a year ago, he was strongly linked to French club Paris St Germain, and only last week his management team were denying reports that he may be heading to Australia - though this latest announcement immediately sparked a new race to take him Down Under.

But Beckham and his wife, former Spice Girl Victoria, are said to be comfortable with life in Los Angeles, where their three sons - Brooklyn, Romeo and Cruz - attend school.

http://news.sky.com/story/1013819/beckham-no-plans-to-retire-from-football

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This is a circus. I can't believe the amount of media that we're seeing about clubs that are trying to sign Beckham for a paltry 10 games guest stint. By the way folks, note that FFA is currently handicapping A League clubs by preventing them from signing Beckham for more than just a 10 games guest stint. A League clubs are only allowed one foreign player as a marquee. All Australian based A League clubs bar Central Coast have a foreign based Marquee. I believe we have Fred. A 10 games guest stint won't sell loads of Beckham merchandise, won't result in a substantial increase in long term sponsorship money, won't sell full season memberships etc. etc. etc. If anything it will be disruptive. If Heart are trying to sign Beckham for just a 10 games guest stint then I hope Heart misses out. I'm dead against 10 games guest stints. Surely the signings of del Piero, Heskey etc. shows that the A League has outgrown 10 games guest stints. In fact I'm so against this 10 games guest stint gimmick that I'm seriously thinking of boycotting Heart's first home game that Beckham plays, should Heart successfully sign Beckham for a paltry 10 games guest stint.

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This is a circus. I can't believe the amount of media that we're seeing about clubs that are trying to sign Beckham for a paltry 10 games guest stint. By the way folks, note that FFA is currently handicapping A League clubs by preventing them from signing Beckham for more than just a 10 games guest stint. A League clubs are only allowed one foreign player as a marquee. All Australian based A League clubs bar Central Coast have a foreign based Marquee. I believe we have Fred. A 10 games guest stint won't sell loads of Beckham merchandise, won't result in a substantial increase in long term sponsorship money, won't sell full season memberships etc. etc. etc. If anything it will be disruptive. If Heart are trying to sign Beckham for just a 10 games guest stint then I hope Heart misses out. I'm dead against 10 games guest stints. Surely the signings of del Piero, Heskey etc. shows that the A League has outgrown 10 games guest stints. In fact I'm so against this 10 games guest stint gimmick that I'm seriously thinking of boycotting Heart's first home game that Beckham plays, should Heart successfully sign Beckham for a paltry 10 games guest stint.

1.) I am pretty sure that Fred is not a Marquee. :oops:

2.) The fact u cannot believe the "Media Hype" about Beckham is probably why u can’t see what a10 game stint could do for MH. :up:

3.) I am pretty sure if u were a real Heart supporter you would care more about your club's survival than to boycott any of its games or in particular games where it is making sure of its survival. :droy:

4.) Who even are u anyway? :droy:

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Doubt it Jimmy. It's a reserved seat.

HeartFc, if you read my post I included the following:

By the way folks, note that FFA is currently handicapping A League clubs by preventing them from signing Beckham for more than just a 10 games guest stint. A League clubs are only allowed one foreign player as a marquee. All Australian based A League clubs bar Central Coast have a foreign based Marquee. I believe we have Fred.

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Doubt it Jimmy. It's a reserved seat.

HeartFc, if you read my post I included the following:

By the way folks, note that FFA is currently handicapping A League clubs by preventing them from signing Beckham for more than just a 10 games guest stint. A League clubs are only allowed one foreign player as a marquee. All Australian based A League clubs bar Central Coast have a foreign based Marquee. I believe we have Fred.

Fred is our highest paid player but he is not a Marquee. :droy:

Edited by cadete
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"At this point, however, we should take a deep breath and think about what exactly is to be gained by having a superstar in our midst for only eight or 10 matches.

Sure, any club lucky enough to sign him albeit for a brief stint would substantially increase the level of its awareness and that of the league.

His mere persona would draw thousands of fans to any ground he graces.

Young players who would have the privilege of training with and playing alongside a man whose pedigree and professionalism are legendary will gain from the experience.

But is this what Australian football needs at such a delicate stage of its development?

The A-League would be much better off if Becks or any other superstar were to come here on a more permanent basis and leave a legacy more lasting than a travelling circus.

There is not much point in a club disrupting its season to accommodate him in an eight-match distraction and then having to go back to square one after he leaves.

Del Piero and Heskey, who are here on a proper contract lasting two seasons and one season, have been an unqualified success so far and all indications are that they will leave an indelible mark on our fledgling competition essentially because they have been brought to Australia for the right reasons.

The clubs and agents responsible for these genuine coups ought to be applauded.

So if the Del Piero project is working, why wouldn't one involving Beckham achieve a similar result?

Many commentators are failing to make the important distinction between guest appearances and permanent stints when discussing the merits or otherwise of engaging a player such as Beckham. Nobody would have a problem with Beckham coming here for a year or two if anyone can afford him, that is. However I cannot possibly get excited by the prospect of a road show that undoubtedly would give the game a shot in the arm for eight or 10 weeks in terms of publicity but ultimately take it back to the days when Australian football was considered a bit of a joke and it relied on such stunts to get any exposure. I would like to think that we have become bigger and more serious about our football than that. Japanese clubs would not contemplate such stunts, no way.

It is little wonder that Melbourne Victory coach Ange Postecoglou gave a flat 'no' when asked if he would be interested in obtaining Beckham's services for a short time.

"It's a distraction and not worth disrupting your season and what you're trying to build for the sake of a few good gates," he explained to The World Game later. "I've never been in favour of guest stints, actually.

Also because if a superstar arrives at our club I would have to drop somebody who has been trying to establish himself in the team. Can you imagine how he would feel?

That's not fair and it is not what football is about."

The strong stand from Postecoglou would suggest that our coaches are mature enough to look beyond the bottom line and treat such money-grabbing gimmicks with the scepticism they deserve.

At http://theworldgame.sbs.com.au/philip-micallef/blog/1129319/Do-we-really-need-a-Beckham-cameo

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Colosimo is our highest paid player, and Bolton is now our "Australian Marquee" (he was shifted to fit Grella inside the cap) So we still have the room to to sign second Marquee, but we've exhausted our 5 VISA places.

I bet Steven Gray looks like a pretty stupid Idea now...

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This is a circus.

In fact I'm so against this 10 games guest stint gimmick that I'm seriously thinking of boycotting Heart's first home game that Beckham plays, should Heart successfully sign Beckham for a paltry 10 games guest stint.

:droy:

Against modern football?

Lol

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Although I dont like the idea that club are willing to be flexible on ethics that they were so vocal about, the last 48 hours have really shown how much interest there will be in the club providing we are willing to open our wallet and invest. If we dont end up with Becks, hopefully the board will realise just how much a household name in the squad will mean to the club and start planning to chase up a big name for next season.

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After Beckham signed for LA Galaxy they sold 300,000 jerseys during his first season at the club (!!!!!!!). The jerseys are worth $80 (American dollars) each, or 50 pounds. That's $24 million dollars (15 million pounds) just in the first season, and only from shirt sales. Beckham is a global icon and a merchandise machine. If he came to sports mad Melbourne then it's almost certain that Heart would make a very tidy profit from merchandise alone.

I'd like Beckham to join for longer than a ten game stint, but i'm not sure we have the pulling power (largely in the form of money) to make that happen. Although, I reckon there is a decent chance that if we sign him for ten games he might decide to sign on for one more season (like with Garcia and Grella, I hope). Hopefully he signs up for a guest stint, settles happily in Melbourne (like Kewell did) and realizes he can make a huge impression playing football in the A-League, despite his age (like Del Piero is). I hope I'm wrong and we can sign him for at least one full season immediately, but I think initially all we can hope for is a 10 game guest stint (which would still be a massive achievement).

Edited by Murfy1
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But putting Shime outside the cap would leave more room for any other signings. Seems like dodgey info.

Yes. Moving Bolton outside the cap would seem completely stupid to me. So we're stuck with 21 players in the senior squad - to sign someone else we have to move a visa player - presumably Fred - outside the cap to 'free up' the cash.

I've heard before that Colosimo is the highest paid (c. $214,000) and Fred the second-highest (c. $200,000). We must be paying way over the odds for some of the others to even get close to the cap, especially with Worm and Terra gone. We know Germano is on the base, and Vrankovic, Garuccio and Gray surely can't be on much more.

Gray has to be the oddest signing yet. A visa player who only even makes the bench if we have injuries.

Edited by jw1739
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Anyone rekon posh would choose Melbourne over Paris?

Its only ten weeks in Summer, its basicly The School Summer Holidays...

Give her the keys to a place down in Portsea with a Private Beach as well as a place in Brighton and I could see her choosing it over 10 weeks of Chilly Paris in Winter.

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I'm sure that Kappa would be stumping up some money to sign him then.

Perhaps if we sign Beckham, Kappa might supply the club with childrens size strips. Last I heard we MIGHT have them by January. Which just happens to be when Beckham will start his stint with us should he come. Coincidence?

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