$250m Becks deal 'not about money'

David Beckham is to leave Real Madrid and move to Los Angeles Galaxy in the summer after agreeing one of the richest deals in sport – but the former England captain insists he is not going for the money.

Beckham will earn an astonishing $250m (€193.9m) from his salary, image rights and associated sponsorship from the five-year deal, which works out just short of $1m (€775,467) a week.

The 31-year-old midfielder wants to use the final era of his playing career in Major League Soccer to attempt to transform football in the USA.

His decision to turn his back on European football has seen him reject several bids from clubs in Britain and Italy, as well as the offer of a new two-year contract at Real Madrid.

Beckham said he wanted to join LA Galaxy now rather than in the twilight of his career.

He said: “I don’t want to go out to America at 34 with people saying he is only going for the money.

“I am going out to hopefully build a team which has a lot of potential, that’s what excites me.

“Soccer in America is the biggest-played sport up to a certain age. That’s where I want to take it to another level, I think it can go higher in America.

“There are so many great sports in the USA. Soccer is huge all around the world except in America and that’s where I want to make a difference.”

In terms of finances, Beckham’s deal and compares with the biggest in mainstream US sports.

Baseball star Alex Rodriguez signed a 252m (£195.4m) contract in 2000 with Texas Rangers, but that was over 10 years.

The MLS have recently changed their salary cap rules to allow sides to make ‘marquee signings’ of top international stars.

As well as his salary, the deal will see Beckham benefit directly from all his image rights and sponsorship deals associated with LA Galaxy. The unique agreement will also involve MLS directly, with the league paying for part of the deal.

Beckham admitted it had been a tough decision and insisted he had no regrets about leaving Manchester United for Spain in July 2003, despite Real having failed to win a single honour since then.

He added: “It has been a huge decision of mine and my family.

“We’ll have been living in Spain for four years at the end of this season and I have played for two of the biggest clubs in the world. I have played at the highest level for 15 years and now I think I need another challenge.

“I’ve no regrets – I have never had any throughout my life and my career.

“To play in the white shirt for four years was an honour. To play with Zinedine Zidane was the biggest honour I have had in my football career, and it was also an honour to play with players such as Ronaldo and Roberto Carlos. For me, there are no regrets.

“For the rest of this season I will continue to give 100% to my coach, team mates and fans as I believe Fabio Capello will bring this club and its supporters the success they truly deserve.”

Beckham already has a soccer academy in Los Angeles which shares a home with the Galaxy.

MLS commissioner Don Garber believes Beckham’s arrival will have a huge impact in the States.

He said: “David Beckham is a global sports icon who will transcend the sport of soccer in America.

“David’s enormous success as a player and team leader will serve as an inspiration to millions of soccer players and fans in this country and his global popularity will help take MLS and the sport of soccer in this country to an unprecedented level of excitement and popularity here and abroad.”

However, MLS’s decision to scrap the salary cap for the top stars such as Beckham been branded ‘a disgrace’ by a former Manchester United youth team-mate.

Terry Cooke, now with the Colorado Rapids, shared digs with Beckham as a teenager when they were trainees at Old Trafford.

“It’s a disgrace if it’s true what I’ve heard about how much he’s going to be earning,” Cooke said.

“Obviously it’s good for him but we have a salary cap here for each team which is $1.9m (€1.47) for a roster of 28 players.

“It’s marketing money but they’ve got to be careful because this is what happened in the 1970s.

“They started throwing money about to Pele, George Best and those sorts of players and it backfired. They’re trying to do that again but for the wrong reasons.”