As the Mirror serialises Tom Bower’s bombshell new book, The House of Beckham, we take a look at how Rebecca Loos and David Beckham’s alleged affair began in 2004

David Beckham’s marriage was rocked when his personal assistant Rebecca Loos claimed they’d had a lusty affair.

In 2004, the former England captain’s PA explosively claimed they’d had a secret four-month fling when he was out in Madrid – while wife Victoria Beckham was back in the UK with their young kids.

The allegations, which Rebecca sold to now defunct News of the World, were denied by David.

In Tom Bower’s new book, The House of Beckham, the author claims that Rebecca decided to go public with her allegations after apparently witnessing David failing to give a Spanish waitress a tip.

Bower explains how the seemingly innocuous incident was the catalyst behind her speaking out.

The author writes: “The turning point for Loos was realising Beckham’s double standards. After a meal for SFX employees at Madrid’s Hard Rock Cafe, Beckham did not leave a tip. The following day, the waitress gave Loos a note for Beckham. Explaining that she survived on the tips, she expressed her anger that someone as famous and rich could be so mean.

“After reading the note, Beckham was alarmed. ‘Give her this,’ he said handing over a thick wodge of euros. Reflecting in February about how Beckham had played her and lied to her, Loos was angry.”

Over the years, Rebecca, now 46, has spoken about their alleged romance in detail and told of how it all began. In an interview with Sky News, she claimed they ‘really hit it off’ during a night out. Rebecca, who described herself as David’s ‘second wife’, said: “It was the first time, we were just locked into each other all night conversation-wise. We just connected. People noticed it.”

She then alleged that David, now 49, was the one to float the idea of drinks back at the hotel, telling her: “Why don’t we just lose the rest and why don’t we just go back together?’” Admitting that she’d known David was married, Rebecca then went on to give her reason for agreeing, despite fearing it would cost her her job.

Rebecca continued: “I gave him a look I was very surprised, very taken aback. I said, ‘f*** off’ in a joking manner. But there was a look and he was still looking at me and I was looking at him. I think one of the girls we were with came up and sat between us. I think the chemistry between David and I was so strong and people were not happy because I was being very unprofessional and he’s a married man.

“Then it dawned on me what he had asked me and I decided I did want to go back with him so we gave each other a look and paid the bill and left. I couldn’t wait to be alone with him and I knew he felt the same. We dropped off the other two people in the car and started kissing quite passionately all the way back to the hotel… It was like magnets, pretty amazing.”

After the allegations came to light, Rebecca went on to forge a career in reality television, appearing in shows such as The Farm, Celebrity Love Island, and Temptation Island. In recent years, however, it appears her life has changed significantly, and she very rarely makes media appearances. Now a married mother-of-two, Rebecca lives in Norway where she works as a yoga teacher and massage therapist.

Opening up in Netflix docuseries Beckham, David and Victoria revealed how damaging the allegations had been for their marriage. Admitting that this was ‘one hundred percent’ the lowest point in their marriage, Victoria, 50, shared: “It was the hardest period for us. Because it felt like the world was against us. And here’s the thing; we were against each other, if I’m being completely honest.

“You know, up until Madrid sometimes it felt like us against everybody else. But we were together. We were connected. We had each other. But when we were in Spain, it didn’t really feel that we had each other either. And that’s sad. I can’t even begin to tell you how hard it was and how it affected me.”