David Beckham has defended his new commercial partnership with Qatar's tourist board, following intense scrutiny from the LGBTQ+ community.
The England legend agreed the £123m, 10-year deal ahead of last year's World Cup in Qatar, which brought with it widespread criticism of the Gulf state's human rights record – including in relation to homosexuality.
Beckham had previously been seen as a key ally of the LGBTQ+ community, once appearing on the cover of gay lifestyle magazine Attitude – so his teaming up with Qatar, where same-sex sexual activity is punishable by death, sparked considerable anger.
However, in a new interview with The Telegraph to promote his upcoming Netflix documentary, Beckham has spoken publicly about his venture for the first time. He said:
"I do a lot of research into partners that I’m going into business with – and I wanted to be involved in another World Cup. I like to see the game grow, and that means it going into territories it hasn’t been in before
"My philosophy has always been that you don’t exclude people, because if you don’t engage and you don’t give people the opportunity, then the world doesn’t change. Engagement with that, for me, is more important than dismissing it."
What's your CRAZIEST prediction for this season?
Beckham further justified his decision by claiming that no on he had met in Qatar had any experience of persecution for being gay. He explained:
"Of course, going into this, I knew there’d be questions; I knew there was going to be criticism – but I’ve always been a believer that football is such a powerful tool.
"I knew that once the World Cup started, not that it would go away, but it was all then about how people were treated; how people weren’t excluded; what an experience the World Cup would be.
"I spent a month out there, and not one person came up to me and said, 'Oh my god, I’ve been treated like this; oh my god, I wasn’t allowed into this place…'. I was around the LGBTQ community – I spoke to people on the ground – so I was happy with my decision."
Read more
EA SPORTS FIFA FC 24 The new game reviewed
QUIZ! Can you name FourFourTwo's 50 greatest players of all time?
