David Beckham to Remain in M.L.S.
David Beckham, the famed international footballer, has reportedly decided to stay stateside and remain at with the same club he just won a title with.
Recently, Beckham was linked to several teams after his contract with the Los Angeles Galaxy expired. One of those teams was Saint-Germain in France, which is owned by the Qatari government. It was seen as a sure thing but other circumstances led Beckham to remain with the Galaxy.
“I had many offers from clubs from around the world, however I’m still passionate about playing in America and winning trophies with the Galaxy,” Beckham explained in a statement.
Get Our Latest News for FREE
And Galaxy fans are happy to see him stay. In 74 games for the Galaxy since 2007, the 36-year-old Beckham has scored 11 times and has 31 assists while leading the team to the playoffs for the past three years.
“I’ve seen first-hand how popular soccer is now in the States and I’m as committed as ever to growing the game here,” Beckham said. “My family and I are incredibly happy and settled in America and we look forward to spending many more years here.”
MLS has grown to 19 teams from 12 since Beckham arrived. In that time, nine new soccer-specific stadiums have been built, giving the league 15. While the average attendance last year was 17,872 and made M.L.S. the 10th-best-attended league in the world, the Galaxy said in the statement.
Beckham made his debut for England’s Manchester United in 1992 as a 17-year-old phenom. He won England’s Premier League title six times while with United. He also won the F.A. Cup twice and the Champions League title once. While he was at Real Madrid he also won the Spanish league title.
In 2011 Beckham scored two goals and had 15 assists and last November Beckham and the L.A. Galaxy defeated the Houston Dynamo to claim the M.L.S. Cup.
