15 November 2023 , 20:30
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It was a goal that broke millions of England fans’ hearts and is still talked about more than two decades on.
Brazilian Ronaldinho ’s looping shot over David Seaman ’s head in the 2002 World Cup sparked feverish debate as to whether it was a fluke or not. Either way, the nation was crestfallen after our quarter-final exit in Japan, and one man was suffering more than most.
“I was thinking to myself on the pitch, ‘come on, lads, get me out of this.’ Because if it stays at 2-1, am I going to get treated the same as what Becks did in 1998?,” says David. “Even while the game’s still going on, those thoughts were going around in my head.”
Ball in the net behind David for Ronaldinho goal (Getty Images)
Beckham consoles teammate David after England’s 2002 World Cup defeat to Brazil in Japan (AFP via Getty Images)Yet even after Ronaldinho was sent off seven minutes later, David’s prayers weren’t answered as England crashed out of the competition. “I went towards the England fans and felt like I’d let everyone down, and then the tears and the emotions came,” David says.
He still can’t remember his teammates rallying around him afterwards at the final whistle. “I’ve seen pictures since of Beckham saying something in my ear, then (manager) Sven... and I still haven’t got a clue what they said,” he says. “I tried to go into the press conference afterwards and I was just breaking down all the time and they were like, ‘No, just take him away.’
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“And then having that worry of coming home and worrying about what sort of reception I was going to get and what was going to happen.? David opened up about that fateful night 21 years ago as part of our special Men in Mind spin-off podcast series, called Outdoors in Mind.
The vital series, to support GO Outdoors and mental health charity Mind’s Hats on for Mind campaign, encourages people to open up about their mental health, as well as embracing the benefits of getting outdoors. It comes as Mind found that 94 percent of people who took part in outdoor exercise activities said they had felt benefits to their mental health.
David says he remembered vividly the abuse dished out to Becks after his sending off for a petulant kick at Diego Simeone, in 1998. The footballer was spat at in the street and subjected to death threats, while an effigy of him was strung up outside a pub with a noose around the neck.
And - four years on - thoughts of that horrific backlash were racing through his head as he endured a gruelling 13-hour plane journey home to London’s Heathrow. But as soon as he stepped onto the tarmac and was whisked through arrivals, the reality was thankfully very different.
David chats with Mirror's Tom (Adam Gerrard / Daily Mirror)“There were a lot of England fans at the airport, and as soon as they saw me, they started singing my name,” he admits. “Honestly, it was such a relief. I still get stick about it. There’s no doubt, from away fans, especially Tottenham fans, but it’s what it is. It’s part of me.”
Beckham’s 1998 sending off, and the subsequent abuse, are explored in his new Netflix documentary. In it, Victoria Beckham reveals how her husband was left clinically depressed, as he struggled with the backlash. It was an admission that left David shocked, not least as the pair were England regulars, but also spoke volumes about men in particular not being able to open up about their mental health.
“You just don’t know, do you? Because there wasn’t a lot said about mental health back then,” he says. While he says Becks’ abuse was “on another level” to what he himself endured during his career, sometimes it could get too much.
“Even me putting the ball down, taking a few paces back to take the goal kick, I’m really close to the fans, and the horrible stuff that they used to shout at me,” he says. “Even at Anfield, way back in the day, I remember getting spat on. By little kids as well, and it was just soul destroying because you can’t do anything.”
Thankfully, David was able to shrug off the crowds, and navigate his way through his career, without any detrimental impact on his mental health. Some of his teammates, however, were less fortunate,and struggled under the weight of alcohol and gambling addiction.
Just as Beckham was struggling in silence, so too were Arsenal teammates Tony Adams and Paul Merson. “I didn’t know that they were struggling that bad until they came out and said so (in a press conference),” he says. “We always used to go out together, and get drunk or whatever. Tony would probably get drunk a little bit more, but I wasn’t aware of how much they were doing it.”
'So fed up of tiresome pal flirting with my husband and always putting me down'
David says it saddens him that the culture in football was such they felt they couldn’t open about their struggles in order to get help. “For a man to actually open up to another man or a teammate, it hardly ever happened,” he recalls. As well as football, David’s other big passion is fishing, and he recently took Merson fishing on the River Wye.
“He absolutely loved it. He’s like, ‘I get it now. He says, ‘I get what buzz you get from this.,” he says. Being down by the river is something he has relished over the years to get away from the hustle and bustle of everyday life. He often sleeps overnight on the riverbank, and enthusiastically shows off his new green fishing van which was a present from wife Frankie, which he arrived for our chat in.
“I love the tranquillity and being at one with nature,” says David. “I always take my binoculars because I just love watching wildlife, especially different birds whizzing around, such as sparrowhawks, kites, buzzards and kestrels.” It’s something that he has enjoyed with former England teammate Paul Gascoigne, who like others has struggled with addiction, and his mental health.
David, right, and celebs in hats they designed in aid of Mind (David Venni)“I used to look after him, even back in the day in Euro 96, we’d go fishing and he’d be messing about, and I’d be like, ‘No, I’m fishing, mate. You do what you want, but I’m fishing.’” But he is clearly very fond of Gazza and sticks by him through thick and thin.
“It is what it is with Paul, he’s up and down, and he’ll phone me up whatever time of night and I’m there for him,” he says. “When you’ve got a friend that’s actually asking for help, you’re going to help them. But asking is the hardest part.”
As well as fishing, David has filled his retirement with a newfound TV career, as well his charity work including designing his own hat for Hats on for Mind. “We raised £230,000 for Mind, the mental health charity last year… it means so much to people,” he says proudly.
When it comes to TV, David is as natural in front of the camera, as he was in-between the sticks. He met dancer Frankie on Dancing on Ice, in 2006, and has since starred in two series of ITV show Harry’s Heroes, as well as The Masked Dancer with his wife.
But it wasn’t always quite so plain-sailing. “I say to people, that is the most nervous I have ever felt in my life, was waiting in the tunnel at Dancing on Ice to go out and perform. The worst ever by a country mile, and I’ve played in two World Cups,” David laughs.
* David is an ambassador for #HatsOnForMind, having designed his own hat and flask, available to purchase online and in-store at partner retailers including GO Outdoors, Blacks, Millets, Naylors and Fishing Republic. 100% of profits from the campaign will go to Mind. For support, go to mind.org.uk
Scan hereFind Outdoors in Mind on Apple podcasts, or go to podfollow.com/outdoorsinmind. Alternatively, scan the QR code above to get it. The vital new series supports mental health charity Mind’s Hats on for Mind campaign, in conjunction with GO Outdoors.