David Beckham's Response

[GrooveArmada]

The family feud has had a number of dedicated threads already, this is not a repeat.

I want to focus on DB's today's response, available here: https://www.theguardian.com/football/2026/jan/20/children-make-mistakes-david-beckham-brooklyn-post

"Children make mistakes" - I find it incredibly offensive and gaslighting. His son is a 26 year old adult man. A husband. He isn't talking about a 5 year old in Reception here.

I think his PR advised him to put children into his response to seemingly soften it, but I think he's very undermining to Brooklyn and this language smacks of being controlling.

AIBU?

and just to be clear. He was talking about children and what they see on social media. Perhaps he also needs to reflect about children and how they are exposed to and on social media by their parents, which can also affect how the children interact with it. Think Harper and how she has been on social media, dressed, lets say, very fashionably. How does that shape her interaction with social media? Think of Brooklyn's statement about the family brand and PR appearances - many of which end up on social media. So may be, just may be, parents make mistakes too? Like over exposing your children to and on social media when they cant even understand and consent. If you as a family are using social media as much as the Beckhams to, how will your children avoid social media? Then once on it that much, its a slippery slope Mr Beckham. Or is it Sir David Beckham.

Oh and yes, the UNICEF he complained about as he wasnt getting honours fast enough. The same UNICEF. Yep

Dont know whether Brooklyn is right or wrong but its a clusterf**k!

This is the whole interview, it’s the last few minutes.

, 'david beckham interview'
https://share.google/ZZmafz8lhFg3VTOEH

It's a typical narcissist's response by blaming someone else: In other words 'children make mistakes, we don't'

I can only hope that another kid manages to break free and declare that 'not only is their marriage a sham but so is my dad's hair! with a pic of a selection of his toupees.

But this is precisely the point. Those answers were likely prepared/tweaked in a certain way.

I guess they could have said “we made mistakes and we are sorry Brooklyn” but realistically a) no one would believe them and b) the impetus would be on Brooklyn to accept this.
Brooklyn seems to be in a place he’s happy with. I don’t think it matters what V&D’s response is.

DB probably thought he'd come across well by saying that because it might indicate he will forgive BB. Totally tone deaf. It's quite typical of such parents.

Or if he hadn't managed to accumulate millions of insta fans through his family name!

Why are the Beckham family feud on the BBC news the mind boggles

This. He was literally there to talk about children in general using social media was he not?

I’m not the target audience for a lot of this stuff but I genuinely don’t get the references to the Beckhams forcing the kids into the spotlight. I don’t remember them being pushed into it as kids, and as far as I can see Brooklyn has elected to put himself in the spotlight with his commercial ventures. Which would have been totally ignored were it not for his surname.

It wasn't a very well thought through response, though, was it? Why on EARTH refer to "my children" in ANY way? He would have known that as soon as he said that, at this time, then back they'd be in the news again....

Hmmmm........🤔

Waiting for the appearance of this kind of social media post in a few months time: "we have all been reflecting and feel that life is too short to carry on like this, the olive branch has been thrown from both sides, and accepted, and we are lookingg forward to spending time as a family again etc etc"

i mean the total fucking irony of using UNICEF to talk about the evils of social media....

So DB & VB having lots of paid photo ops with their kids, from BB's birth, and putting lots of photos of them on social meida isn't "forcing the kids into the spotlight"? Hilarious

In the minds of some on here, it's only at 25 that one's off-spring are adults!

Yes and it was a very bland statement barely referencing his own kids and talkihng about in general kids make mistakes (on social media), the inference is around safety in my view. Its the sort of thing we talk about at work a lot (for children).

The speech was pre-written - David Beckham rarely does anything off the cuff. They probably decided to keep children reference in because he was specifically talking about online safety and kids. This was not in any way a response to Brooklyn’s statement.

But it's NOT bland when made in the context of his son dropping what he did on social media and making the worldwide news with it. Come on now.

Seriously? Even the Guardian's not above 'reporting' on this fucking melodrama.

A family of wealthy witless wonders.

And yet so many people are invested in their undignified public squabbles.

And yet so many people are invested in their undignified public squabbles.

Aye,I find it interesting having had a connection to them 6 years back. What's your reason @silverwrath ?

That's exactly the type of response from a narc parent. Those of us who have this in our lives know this 💯

Bet they give their kids the silent treatment any time they make a "mistake".

Exactly. It's on the fucking BBC news as I'm typing. Why is Beckham lecturing others about the bad side of social media at when he is helping to make it worse! Using social media to raise your profile by mixing your personal life with your professional life is, as far as I'm concerned, unethical. Even more so when you're profiting from it financially, whether you give some to charity or not.

What happened to "don't mix business with pleasure"?

The only thing ALL the members of the Beckham family and their partners can do now is to acknowledge as a group the damage their kind of online presence/influencing does in society and maybe work with relevant bodies towards trying to reverse some of the damage that's been created as a result.

Would any of them be prepared to give up such a lucrative avenue of self-promotion, that's the question. And that goes for all of them, including Brooklyn.

What should he have said do you think?

Like I said, I’m not the target audience - I don’t remember the baby photo shoot at all. And don’t follow them on social media. Seems a bit weird to follow the magazine spreads and social media posts and then moan that they put their kids in it thought. That’s celebrity isn’t it? Sometimes I find it entertaining, a lot of the time it’s quite boring.

Totally agree op

My first thoughts where you controlling bastard

He uses the words allows his children as though he does still control BB or wants too.

Because he's talking about football, which is a very moneyed industry and has a lot of power globally. But trust him to stick his nose in. I dislike the way he inserts himself into things. The Beckhams are tpo up themselves in my opinion. She's a good fashion designer and he knowsxabout football but they have ramped up their oen significance in acwaybthat is out of proportion to their actual abilities or effectiveness . They should get off the stage.

@sprigatito excellent post.

I'm so glad other people can see the nuances and issues in DB response today.