David Beckham is reportedly planning one final big send-off on English soil in a match at Old Trafford that could raise £1 billion for charity.
The former England captain is set to return to Manchester United with his current club LA Galaxy in a money-spinning clash next summer, according to the Daily Star Sunday.
Beckham's international career appears to be over and having passed up the opportunity to bid farewell to his fans at Wembley, the game at the ground where he began his career will almost certainly be his last in England.
And with global interest in the midfielder at an all-time high, the scope for generating money from the game is huge.
High-profile sponsors will be attracted to the game with a global television audience of more than 100 million expected. Rights to screen the game will go to the highest bidder, the newspaper reported.
And advertising at the stadium and on-screen would be sold, helping generate a bumper cash pot which Beckham would be happy to donate to charity, the paper said.
LA Galaxy’s head coach Bruce Arena confirmed the match is in the pipeline.
He told the Daily Star Sunday: "Imagine if we could return to Manchester United with David Beckham. If we could do that…how fabulous that would be.
"So that would be something I'm sure we're looking into as David completes his career here with LA Galaxy.
"It would be fun. It was remarkable this year when he played there last year for AC Milan."
A source close to Beckham told the Daily Star Sunday: "This game between United and Galaxy has been on the cards for a while.
"It would be fantastic for him to play at Old Trafford again to applaud the fans who supported him there for so many years.
"But he wouldn’t just look at this as a chance for him to remember past glories.
"With the charity potential it would be great to exploit the match so he can raise lots of money for charity.
"That’s just the way he is. The idea is to make up to a billion pounds for charity."
http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/22082010/58/international-football-becks-plans-charity-send.html
The former England captain is set to return to Manchester United with his current club LA Galaxy in a money-spinning clash next summer, according to the Daily Star Sunday.
Beckham's international career appears to be over and having passed up the opportunity to bid farewell to his fans at Wembley, the game at the ground where he began his career will almost certainly be his last in England.
And with global interest in the midfielder at an all-time high, the scope for generating money from the game is huge.
High-profile sponsors will be attracted to the game with a global television audience of more than 100 million expected. Rights to screen the game will go to the highest bidder, the newspaper reported.
And advertising at the stadium and on-screen would be sold, helping generate a bumper cash pot which Beckham would be happy to donate to charity, the paper said.
LA Galaxy’s head coach Bruce Arena confirmed the match is in the pipeline.
He told the Daily Star Sunday: "Imagine if we could return to Manchester United with David Beckham. If we could do that…how fabulous that would be.
"So that would be something I'm sure we're looking into as David completes his career here with LA Galaxy.
"It would be fun. It was remarkable this year when he played there last year for AC Milan."
A source close to Beckham told the Daily Star Sunday: "This game between United and Galaxy has been on the cards for a while.
"It would be fantastic for him to play at Old Trafford again to applaud the fans who supported him there for so many years.
"But he wouldn’t just look at this as a chance for him to remember past glories.
"With the charity potential it would be great to exploit the match so he can raise lots of money for charity.
"That’s just the way he is. The idea is to make up to a billion pounds for charity."
http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/22082010/58/international-football-becks-plans-charity-send.html
.