Frank Myrland


This was probably not the direction that the public relations managers of the Los Angeles Galaxy envisioned the Beckham saga would take.

After spending some time with AC Milan on a loan agreement, the English footballer returned to his American side just in time to play against his former team in a ‘friendly’ which was anything but. Beckham claims he expected some backlash considering how his time with Los Angeles has progressed, but the reaction was considerably beyond what was expected.

Armed with signs calling Beckham a fraud and chanting insults to the melody of Pink Floyd’s iconic ‘Another Brick on the Wall’, a group of Los Angeles’ most rabid spectators, dubbed the L.A. Riot Squad, unleashed their pent up anger towards the once mighty midfielder.  

After what was surely an aggravating half, Beckham responded at the half-time break by striding towards the most vocal of his critics while gesturing with his hands as if encouraging a fight.  Security and players intervened both to stop Beckham, who had paused at the advertising boards, and to whisk away the sole fan who leapt onto the field to accept Beckham’s challenge. The eager fan has not gone unpunished for his actions, and has since received a lifetime ban from the stadium and a dishonourable discharge from the L.A. Riot Squad on top of his initial arrest for trespassing.

Though Beckham has claimed publically that he made no attempt to rile up the angry fans, the spectators have a different story to tell. After watching video footage of the event, which is now readily available in nearly every corner of the internet, it certainly looks as though Beckham intended to provoke the spectator before he suddenly seems to remember himself and offer a sarcastic handshake instead.

Despite the sideline shenanigans, Beckham and the Galaxy turned in an impressive effort against AC Milan. Beckham even recorded an assist for the second goal, placing a corner kick on the head of a teammate for the tally. Beckham blew a kiss to his detractors for that effort. 

Team coach and general manager Bruce Arena unsurprisingly commented that he regretted the incident between Beckham and the fans. The MLS Commissioner fined the footballer $1,000 for his actions in the incident and reprimanded the star for his less than admirable interaction with the spectators.

Despite many years of being counted amongst the best in the world, Beckham has been challenged by both Galaxy fans and American teammate Landon Donovan as being lacklustre and disinterested during his stint with the team. Donovan accused him of not giving much of an effort after the squad fell behind in the standings in previous seasons and the media has enjoyed reporting that a sizeable rift has since grown between the two stars of the Galaxy.

Anonymous writers eager to forward their own views of the incident have already spread their comments across the internet like wildfire. A common target of these writers is the American understanding of the game of football, and perhaps there is reason to criticise if a group named the Riot Squad isn’t able to initiate a riot even when provoked. It seems that the Americans have more to learn about football related hooliganism. But joking aside, this incident isn’t doing any favours for the reputation of American football fans.

What’s next for Beckham? Having found himself in hostile territory, the interloper is more likely than ever to abandon the Yanks and work his way back to Europe for the next season. If Beckham returns to form then he surely can win the fans back, but would he really even want to by this point? After accepting his lucrative salary, the man who was once described as the saviour of the MLS has been almost invisible. And what did anyone really expect? Not even David Beckham can turn around a losing team, or turn all eyes of a nation to an often ignored sport.

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