While Inter and Barcelona were facing off in the Champions League semifinals, David Beckham recounted his 2003 move to Real Madrid and how it could’ve ended up with him joining Barcelona on the Beckham and Friends watchalong show on Paramount+. Beckham’s move to Real Madrid was a massive moment not only for him but for English soccer as well. It was a new territory for an England international moving to the biggest club in Spain. But without Beckham’s interjection, it would’ve ended up with him joining Barcelona instead of Real Madrid.
Getting the call that he was going to be sold from Manchester United, Beckham was told that he was headed to Barcelona, but with his dream being to move to Real Madrid, that wasn’t a move that was going to work if he was going to leave the club and he told them that if he was to be sold to Spain, it had to be to Real Madrid. United were able to come together and quickly sort out a move, sending Beckham to Madrid, and the rest is history.
At Real Madrid, Beckham would go on to score 20 goals in 158 matches while winning La Liga and the Spanish Super Cup during his four seasons with the La Liga side. In 2007, he was one of the key figures in helping Real Madrid lift that title. Beckham was also instrumental in England’s sides during that period, taking part in the 2004 European Championship and the 2006 World Cup for the Three Lions. But it all could’ve been different if that call informing him of a move had been received differently.