David Beckham is arguably the most recognisable English footballer of all time – so why hasn’t he received a knighthood?
Beckham, 50, is as much a celebrity as he is a former footballer and has crossed into the mainstream like no other.
Playing for some of the world’s biggest clubs, such as Manchester United and Real Madrid, combined with marrying Spice Girl Victoria, saw his fame rocket to levels rarely seen for a footballer.
But he has yet to be honoured by King Charles.
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Several former footballers and managers, such as Sir Kenny Dalglish and Sir Alex Ferguson, have received knighthoods previously, but Beckham has missed out.
However, there are several supposed reasons for his long-time omission from the honours list.
The former England captain was previously backed to receive a knighthood back in 2014 after working with charity UNICEF and playing a prominent role in the London 2012 Olympics.
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As reported by BBC News, Beckham was one of 1,000 people who invested in “Ingenious film financing schemes in the hope of securing tax relief”.
Ingenious qualified for tax breaks designed to support the UK film industry.
However, “HMRC said Ingenious claimed relief on artificial losses from its films.
“That meant the schemes were not legitimate investment opportunities but actually a means of avoiding tax”.
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It took several years for Beckham to be given the all-clear over the financial issues, and there was no suggestion of any wrongdoing by Beckham or any of the individuals who invested in the Ingenious Media scheme.
In 2017, Football Leaks unveiled alleged leaked emails which stated that Beckham claimed his omission from the 2014 honours list and the system as a whole was a “f***king joke”.
It was also claimed Beckham wrote: "I expected nothing less. It's a disgrace, to be honest, and if I was American, I would of got something like this 10 years ago."
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At the time, Beckham's representatives insisted the emails had been "doctored".
However, Beckham has been tipped to receive a knighthood next week during the King’s birthday honours list.
According to The Sun, Beckham will be named in the honours list with Victoria set to become Lady Beckham.
Just last year, the former Real Madrid star was made a charity ambassador by King Charles.
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At the time, Beckham said: “I’m excited to be working with The King’s Foundation and to have the opportunity to help raise awareness of the charity’s work.
"I’ve always been keen to help young people to expand their horizons, and I’m particularly looking forward to supporting the Foundation’s education programmes and its efforts to ensure young people have greater access to nature.
“Having developed a love for the countryside, I’m also on a personal mission to learn more about rural skills, which is so central to the Foundation’s work.
“It was inspiring to hear from The King about the work of His Majesty’s Foundation during my recent visit to Highgrove Gardens — and compare beekeeping tips.”
Topics: David Beckham, Football, Man Utd, England
Luke Davies