Somehow, it was just meant to be.
International soccer star David Beckham -- perhaps equally famous hereabouts as the husband of former pop singer "Posh" Spice -- announced Thursday in Madrid that he has agreed to a five-year, potential $250-million deal with the Los Angeles Galaxy, injecting a fresh shot of celebrity into a city where it is practiced as an art.
While Galaxy and Major League Soccer officials hope the deal will vault the American professional league into the global ranks, Londoners are feeling a sense of loss and local paparazzi are relishing the arrival of the photogenic jet-setters -- he of the constantly changing locks and quintessential metrosexual wardrobe, and she of the impossibly thin frame and penchant for shopping.
"It's like manifest destiny," said producer Peter Guber, the host of the TV entertainment talk show "Sunday Morning Shootout." "At a certain point in somebody's career, Hollywood is an inevitable stop on the journey. Whatever the luminosity of these celebrities in New York or England or Paris, they want to test it against the ultimate pop culture of Los Angeles."
It's not the first time a couple have come to Los Angeles to revive flagging careers, but few bring the star wattage of David and Victoria Beckham, the splashy English duo who have been making noise since 2003 about conquering America.
Their plan is gaining traction. The Galaxy said it had sold 2,000 season tickets in just a few hours after announcing the deal with Beckham. About 80% of Beckham's deal, according to a source familiar with the contract, will come from endorsements and image rights.
"Clearly, this will raise our profile overseas," Major League Soccer Commissioner Don Garber said Thursday. "The amount of global media attention in the last week leading up to this, and certainly in the last 24 hours, has been more than this league has ever received in our 11-year history."
Beckham, who has played professionally for 15 years, first with Manchester United in England and for the past 3 1/2 years with Real Madrid in Spain, is in decline as a player but at 31 is still young enough to be a significant force for the Galaxy. Part of the reason he made this deal, sources said, was to prove to skeptics that he is not past his prime.
