David Beckham to Play for L.A. Galaxy

LOS ANGELES (AP) _ David Beckham has conquered the rest of the world as the most recognized soccer player around. Now, he's beginning his march across America. <br/><br/>Taking the first step Thursday,

Friday, January 12th 2007, 6:10 am

By: News On 6

LOS ANGELES (AP) _ David Beckham has conquered the rest of the world as the most recognized soccer player around. Now, he's beginning his march across America.

Taking the first step Thursday, Beckham announced a five-year deal to play for the Los Angeles Galaxy, starting this summer.

``Beckham Comes to America'' flashed on video screens outside Staples Center, owned by AEG, the sports and entertainment company that runs the Galaxy.

Beckham's first task? Converting football, baseball and basketball-crazed Americans into soccer fans.

That could be his biggest hurdle since the United States is the last _ and largest _ market where Beckham's cult of personality has few believers. A superstar whose movements have convulsed Asian capitals and helped sell millions of European tabloids has been able to walk American streets in relative anonymity.

``There are so many great sports in America,'' said Beckham, the 31-year-old former England captain. ``There are so many kids that play baseball, American football, basketball. But soccer is huge all around the world apart from America, so that's where I want to make a difference with the kids.''

In Los Angeles, Beckham's mandate calls for raising the profile of an average team in a soccer league that has little respect overseas and less recognition than the University of Southern California football team.

``I'm going out there to hopefully build a club and team that's got a lot of potential,'' Beckham said. ``I think that's what excites me.''

The Beckham effect was felt immediately: The Galaxy sold 1,000 new season tickets Thursday morning. Their season begins April 8.

The team averages 22,000 to 24,000 fans in its 27,000-seat stadium in suburban Carson, although attendance was down last season when the Galaxy missed the playoffs.

``They know we Latinos are filling the soccer stadiums. That's why they want to bring stars here,'' said Juan Munguia, a 30-year-old Mexican hotel cook. ``I will go just to see Beckham.''

Already in the works is a 2008 Galaxy tour of Asia, where Beckham is wildly popular. A new team logo will be unveiled this summer and the Galaxy's owner is nearing a deal to slap a prime sponsor's name on its jerseys.

``We will absolutely market the Galaxy as a global brand,'' said Tim Leiweke of AEG, the sports and entertainment company whose holdings include Staples Center _ where the city's resident superstar, Kobe Bryant, plays for the Lakers.

Beckham will become the biggest star to play U.S. professional soccer since Pele and Franz Beckenbauer were in the now-defunct North American Soccer League in the 1970s.

The Galaxy didn't say exactly what they'll pay him, but floated a figure of $250 million in salary and commercial endorsements over the five years of his contract. In other words, his move could be worth $1 million a week.

``David Beckham is a global sports icon who will transcend the sport of soccer in America,'' gushed Major League Soccer commissioner Don Garber.

Beckham has not found much success since he moved to Spanish team Real Madrid in 2003 from Manchester United, where he won six league titles, two FA Cups and the Champions League title. He has no major trophies with the nine-time European Cup champions.

Beckham started only five of 25 matches for Real Madrid this season. He turned down a two-year contract extension from Real Madrid, where his fading skills left him on the bench. He'll start for the Galaxy.

``He's coming here to make a difference,'' Galaxy coach Frank Yallop said. ``He's not coming here on vacation.''

Off the field, all the pieces are in place for Beckham's entry into Hollywood:

_His deal was negotiated in a mere 10 days by major entertainment industry players Simon Fuller, creator of ``American Idol,'' and Creative Artists Agency, home to some of Hollywood's biggest actors.

_He already has a soccer academy at the Galaxy's stadium complex in suburban Carson.

_He and Spice Girl wife Victoria count Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise as pals and have enough other high-profile connections to be out on the town every night.

_Becks 'n' Posh (Victoria's moniker in the Spice Girls pop group) have young sons with tabloid friendly names: Brooklyn and Romeo.

_The Beckhams are represented by Fuller, who could help deliver the Hollywood career that Victoria has long sought.

``It's not lost on them that it's the entertainment capital of the world and they know many people in the entertainment industry here,'' said Leiweke, president and chief executive officer of AEG and a personal friend of the couple.

Drawing paparazzi like movie stars, Beckham and his wife regularly find their way onto tabloid and magazine covers. With trendy clothes and rotating hair colors and styles, he's the epitome of the modern celebrity-athlete.

``He needs to maintain brand Beckham, and L.A. is the natural place to do that,'' said Neil Montgomery, a manager mulling Beckham's deal from a London pub. ``They like glamorous people, and they're going to be fawned over.''

In Madrid, where Beckham will play out his contract that ends June 30, school headmaster Andres Bayon said the move was a good one.

``In Madrid, he never functioned as a player, he was only a product of marketing,'' Bayon said. ``He's over the hill now and any reserve player will do a better job than him. I think his wife has had a major influence on his decision.''

Beckham's soccer skills are only part of the equation. His status as fashion icon, tabloid fixture and marketing giant have made him David Beckham Inc., a multinational corporation with links to Pepsi, Gillette, Motorola and Adidas.

Veteran publicist Michael Levine called Beckham's move ``a great, great chance of a lifetime.''

``No nation on the planet affects the culture of the world like America,'' Levine said. ``You can say, `Look, I'm big in England, I'm big in this, I'm big in that.' If you want to dominate the world, you've got to dominate America in terms of cultural impact.''