David Beckham has revealed his wife Victoria Beckham 'regrets' going 'too far' as one of the most famous WAGs in the world.
The former England captain has reflected on how the high-profile coverage of footballers' partners being present at major tournaments impacted the team's performance.
The 47-year-old admits that former Spice Girls singer is the first person to turn around and ask: "What was I doing? What was I wearing? Why would I do that?" when reminiscing.
England in the 2006 World Cup in Germany is remembered for all the wrong reasons after the so-called 'Golden Generation' crashing out in the quarter finals and star striker Wayne Rooney receiving a red card, writes the Mirror.
Off the pitch the WAGs - including Victoria Beckham, Ashley Cole's wife at the time Cheryl and Coleen Rooney - attracted a mass of attention in Baden-Baden, as they stepped out in eye-catching outfits across the city in between cheering on their partners.
A lot of blame was placed on the women for the professional male footballers underperforming once again during a big tournament - something then-England boss Sven-Goran Eriksson dismissed as a "stupid excuse" at the time.
Reflecting on the peak of WAG culture with his former Manchester United teammate Gary Neville, David said: "There was a lot of attention around the families but I always believed, as an England captain, having the kids around and wives or girlfriends wasn’t a bad thing.
"But looking back, that whole culture, there was a lot of attention, and whether people behaved themselves in the right manner - I don’t know.
"Even Victoria, she is the first to say when she looks back: 'What was I doing? What was I wearing? Why would I do that?' I think it went a bit too far.
"There was more spoken about the WAGs than the football. At that time, for the players, you want to focus on the tournament rather than anything else," he continued on The Overlap podcast.
"I do think it went too far but I do believe having them there at the right time is a good thing."
David and Gary's trip down memory lane about WAG culture comes as current England boss Gareth Southgate has banned the national team's wives and girlfriends from starring in a fly-on-the-wall World Cup documentary later this year.
The Three Lions manager reportedly won't even use the term WAG, as he believes it is disrespectful.
A lot has changed since the lives of footballers' wives attracted so much attention and fascination throughout national tournaments - with many feeling how the treatment of women married to footballers in the 00s was riddled with sexism and misogyny.
These days, one-time Queen of the WAGs Victoria is now a world famous fashion designer - with her 00s footballer's wife style firmly a thing of the past.
Speaking about her fashion evolution last year, the mum-of-four admitted she cringes at some of the matching outfits she and husband David used to wear back in the day.
"It just seemed like a really good idea at the time," the former singer confessed on The Tonight Show in October.
"It really did. I think there was a naivety then, we didn't know about fashion. We were just having fun with it," she added when chatting all things fashion with host Jimmy Fallon.
"We didn't know about fashion. We were just having fun with it, which to be honest with you, is kind of the way it should be. I really wish I had the courage to do it more now."
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