Inside David Beckham’s close friendship with the royal family – all the best photos

David Beckham’s admiration for the royal family goes back to his childhood, with the former footballer being a self-proclaimed “royalist”.

Throughout his career and his charity work, the 48-year-old sports star has met several members of the royal family.

David and his wife, fashion designer and former Spice Girl, Victoria Beckham, have also attended the royal weddings of Prince William and Kate Middleton, and Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.

He’s one of the most famous people of the planet but following the death of Queen Elizabeth II in September 2022, after he queued for 13 hours to see Her Late Majesty lying in state at Westminster Hall – refusing opportunities to skip the line.

After paying his respects to Her Late Majesty, he said: “Anytime throughout my career I’ve been asked to do anything regarding the royal family, Her Majesty, the princes, our King now, I have always been very willing to do that.

“I grew up in a family that were royalists. Today I think back to my grandparents because if my grandparents were alive they would have been here, so it’s nice to be here to celebrate with everybody the life of Her Majesty and her legacy that she leaves.”

The father-of-four met the late Queen several times, including at the opening of the 2002 Commonwealth Games and when she awarded him his OBE for his services to football in 2003.

Over the years, he has also been involved in the Queen’s Young Leader Award, established in 2014.

In May earlier this year, David attended an awards ceremony where the King celebrated British fashion designers.

David and Victoria have reportedly shared a close friendship with Princes William and Harry over the years.

During her pop star days as Posh Spice, Victoria met Harry, then 13, backstage at the Spice Girls’ concert in Johannesburg in 1997.

Victoria’s designs have also been worn by Princess Kate, the Duchess of Sussex and the Duchess of Edinburgh.

In the run-up to the Sussexes’ nuptials in May 2018, she was one of the designers tipped to create Meghan’s wedding dress, but that honour eventually fell to Clare Waight Keller of Givenchy.

Victoria said she was “honoured and humbled” when she received her OBE for services to fashion from Prince William in 2017.

Meanwhile, David has shown his support for several of William and Harry’s charitable initiatives through the years.

In 2018, the former midfielder and his second son, Romeo, attended Harry’s Invictus Games tournament in Sydney, Australia.

And in 2014, David teamed up with William to support a campaign with United for Wildlife, which aims to protect animals from illegal poaching.

He also joined the Prince and Princess of Wales at William’s environmental Earthshot Prize Awards in Boston last November.

See more photographs of David Beckham with the royal family in the gallery below…