It has been one of the many milestone moments in a year that also saw him turn 50 years old and be knighted by King Charles, but Sir David Beckham seemed to be in a reflective mood on Wednesday evening as he continued to celebrate his MLS Cup Final triumph on social media. The former football star shared a throwback family photo that also featured his eldest son Brooklyn, 26, from whom he is understood to still be estranged.
David posted a photo to Instagram of his family taken at the pivotal game in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on Saturday while holding the trophy his football team Inter Miami CF had just won. He posed on the pitch at Chase Stadium alongside his wife Victoria, 51, as well as three of their children - son Romeo, 23, son Cruz, 20, and 14-year-old daughter Harper - who had all assembled to cheer on the team he co-owns against the Vancouver Whitecaps FC, whom they beat 3–1.
This was positioned next to a photo of the night he won the MLS Cup Final in 2012 while still a professional player for team LA Galaxy. In the throwback photo, a then 37-year-old sportsman held up a UK flag while posing behind his young sons Brooklyn, Romeo and Cruz - the latter of whom was adorably clutching the trophy. He captioned the compilation: "License to cry."
Victoria wrote on her own Instagram after the match: "I couldn't be prouder of you, David. You had a HUGE dream and through hard work, perseverance, and not listening to 'no', you made it come true. Tonight you are an MLS cup winner as an owner!!!! You inspire me every day. I love you so much!!! Congratulations." He is the first person to win the competition as both a player and owner.
© @davidbeckham / InstagramThe father-of-four’s post also references a time of much change for the Beckham family, which included baby daughter Harper who was aged just one at the time. They relocated from California back to the UK the following year, in mid-2013, and he retired from playing professionally that same year. This was also when his wife Victoria took her eponymous fashion line to the next level by launching an e-commerce website so that her wares were available globally for the first time.
However, David’s post is also significant because it references happier times between him and his firstborn son Brooklyn - who shared a video on Instagram demonstrating how to make French onion soup as the rest of his immediate family celebrated the win. There has been extensive speculation about the reason why he and his 30-year-old wife Nicola Peltz - who are based in Los Angeles - have become estranged from the rest of the Beckham family since shortly after their 2022 wedding.
© Dave Benett/WireImageInsiders recently told HELLO! that Nicola is the cause of tension between Brooklyn and his parents, with the source saying: "From the minute Nicola came into the family, she hasn’t shown what Victoria would say is respect towards them." They continued: "Tensions rose at their wedding and that situation has continued; Victoria and Nicola don’t really get along."
At a family gathering earlier this year, Victoria brought up the subject of grandchildren with her daughter-in-law. "[She] was talking about babies, saying that she was a young mum and that it might be a good idea to get going. Nicola didn’t take well to that," the source added. In the months since, they haven't liked each other's posts and Brooklyn and Nicola haven't attended any key family events - including the world premiere of mum Victoria's Netflix documentary.
