Ridiculous and untrue - David Beckham to sue magazine over affair allegations

Published on Wednesday 22 September 2010 18:33

FORMER England football captain David Beckham plans to sue an American magazine after it published claims that he has had an affair.

• David Beckham denies the claims. Pic: Getty

The Los Angeles-based superstar issued an immediate statement describing In Touch magazine's report as "completely untrue and ridiculous".

Beckham, 35, who has played for the LA Galaxy team for the last three years, was alleged to have cheated on his wife Victoria in 2007.

The claims - and the front cover of the magazine, which has the headline "The Ultimate Betrayal" -- spread around the world via the social-networking site Twitter and numerous celebrity gossip websites yesterday.

Irma Nici, said to be a 26-year-old prostitute, is reported claiming to have slept with the star five times in 2007.

She is quoted saying: "All of these women dream of being with him, and I got to hook up with him. It was very exciting."

Beckham's publicists, Rogers and Cowan, said he would be pursuing a legal action against the magazine.

Its statement from Beckham, who lives with wife Victoria and their three children in LA, read: "The allegations that have been made are completely untrue and ridiculous as the magazine was clearly told before publication.

"Sadly we live in a world where a magazine can print lies and believe they can get away with it.

"We are taking legal action against the magazine."

Beckham has always denied widely-publicised claims that he had an affair with former personal assistant Rebecca Loos.

The new claims about Beckham have been published just weeks after leading England strikers Wayne Rooney and Peter Crouch have faced lurid allegations about their private lives.

Married father-of-two John Terry was stripped of the England captaincy by manager Fabio Capello in the run-up to this summer's World Cup after his alleged affair with the ex-girlfriend of former Chelsea team-mate Wayne Bridge, who pulled out of the tournament in the wake of widespread media coverage of the claims.

England colleague Ashley Cole's pop-singer wife, Cheryl, finally left him after enduring years of humiliation in relation to his alleged affairs.

Three England footballers have won High Court injunctions in the last few weeks banning reporting of allegations about their private lives.

None of the trio can be identified for legal reasons.

Former Manchester United and Real Madrid star Beckham, who was unable to play in the World Cup because of injury, is still hoping to revive his England career, despite Capello appearing to have ruled out any future involvement in the team from the player.

He is due to travel to Trinidad and Tobago for a special appearance at the final of the Under 17 Women's World Cup.He is expected to use the occasion to help promote the case for England's bid to host the full-scale 2018 tournament.

Victoria Beckham, 36, was in the headlines last week for her work as a fashion designer after unveiling a new clothing collection at New York Fashion Week.

The couple, who have been married since 1999 and are thought to be worth in the region of 120 million, live in Beverly Hills, near to film star couple Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes.

Earlier this month they revealed a new television advertising campaign they are starring in together for their Beckham fragrance, Intimately Yours.