So Golden Balls has come full circle. The first time they were tarnished, back in 1998, people were so appalled by David Beckham they hung effigies of him, and it seemed like his reputation would never recover.
It did though of course, because that was only about a football match.
He’s since weathered both Loosgate and Knighthoodgate, and seemed pretty invincible public perception-wise. But this is different.
There’s no coming back from this, no queue he can humbly join that is long enough to ever make us forget this.
Taking 'blood money' to promote Qatar’s World cup is unforgivable.
That’s all there is to it. And yet, somehow it’s even worse, because David Beckham is clearly not short of a million or two, is he?
He probably won’t even notice the money he adds to his pile from this shameful contract.
Being the face of this tournament is like taking cash to promote a disco dancing competition held by the Nazis.
Everyone involved in this World Cup is so clearly on the wrong side of history we don’t even need to wait for it to become history to see that.
But Beckham – the ambassador for it - must be judged the most harshly for his sickening deal with the devil.
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Remember when the true nature of this man was revealed, in his foul-languaged rant about not having been given a Knighthood?
With hindsight, that’s yet another feather in our late Queen’s crown.
It’s hard not to wonder if Beckham has lost even a minute’s sleep, as he memorises anodyne answers to trot out in interviews, neatly swerving the awkward little matters of human rights, LGBTQ+ rights, humanity in general.
Or if he’ll come to regret his decision in the future, once he realises that there’s no amount of money that can wash this off his hands. Ever.
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