David Beckham has responded with a statement after son Brooklyn's explosive claims about his family.
Brooklyn's relationship with his parents has become strained and there have been a flurry of reports about a bitter feud in the Beckham family.
Brooklyn, the eldest child of David and Victoria, has been absent from the family circle for an extended period and missed a number of family events - including his dad's 50th birthday bash and knighthood.
For Christmas, he spent the festive season with wife Nicola Peltz and her family in the US while the rest of the Beckhams were celebrating at the Cotswolds.
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In a new development, reports claimed that there was “an exchange of legal letters” between the 26-year-old and his parents through their legal teams Schillings and Harbottle & Lewis.
And off the back off that, Brooklyn unloaded on his family in a statement where he made a series of claims on Instagram.
In the post, which lasted six slides on his story, Brooklyn claimed he had been controlled by his parents and was born into a life of "performative social media posts, family events and inauthentic relationships".
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He also accused David and Victoria of "trying endlessly" to ruin his relationship with wife, who he feels has been "consistently disrespected" and addressed controversy around their wedding by claiming his mother pulled out of designing the dress at the eleventh hour and "hijacked" his first dance.
The Cloud 23 owner later claimed that he had travelled to see his dad around his 50th birthday but that the Inter Miami co-owner "refused" all attempts and only wanted a meeting to happen at the party in front of "a hundred guests and cameras at every corner".
Brooklyn said that he has found "peace and relief" in the life he has chosen with Nicola and has no intentions of reconciling with his family.
Beckham has now responded, giving an interview on social media and admitting, "You have to let your children make mistakes".
"I have always spoken about social media and the power of social media," he said, speaking to Andrew Ross Sorkin on CNBC’s financial program Squawk Box.
"For the good and for the bad. What kids can access these days, it can be dangerous. But what I have found personally, especially with my kids as well, use it for the right reasons."
He added: "I’ve been able to use my platform for my following, for UNICEF. And it has been the biggest tool to make people aware of what’s going on around the world for children.
"And I have tried to do the same with my children, to educate them.
"They make mistakes, but children are allowed to make mistakes. That is how they learn. That is what I try to teach my kids, you sometimes have to let them make those mistakes as well."
Topics: David Beckham
Josh Lawless