David Beckham has revealed that he was left an apology note on his car by an unknown person, after the release of his Netflix docuseries.
The former footballer, 49, opened up in the documentary about the abuse he received in the aftermath of the 1998 World Cup.
He was sent off in England’s quarter-final clash with Argentina for kicking out at Diego Simeone after the Argentina captain shoved him to the ground.
England went on to lose the game on penalties, with David being blamed for the defeat and being hit by a torrent of hatred from fans.
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He was constantly booed and jeered by fans of opposition clubs for the majority of the following 1998-99 season.
With a burning effigy of him and death threats among the worst of the backlash
After opening up on the abuse in his docuseries.
David received a wave of support from the public, who praised him for his strength during the difficult time.
Speaking about the effect of his candidness in an Emmy Extra Edition cover of VARIETY, he said that he was glad that it made people take mental health more seriously.
He said: ‘I think that my takeaway from my documentary was how important mental health is. Because, 20 years ago, nobody was talking about it. And nobody was taking it seriously.
‘Now, it’s so great that people can actually talk about their feelings… There were many things said about us over the 27 years. It can be hurtful.’
David went on to reveal that recently he and wife Victoria, 50, had gone to a pub and returned to their car to find a note with no name or address.
He said: ‘It read, “We’re sorry how you were treated.” I’ve got the letter still. But that’s how people, I think, felt after the documentary.’
David opened up on the turbulent period in his series last October, confessing he was a ‘mess’ and left unable to eat or sleep, while Victoria revealed that he suffered from clinical depression and the experience ‘broke’ him.
He recalled feeling ‘very vulnerable and alone’ as he landed back in the UK to hordes of jeering spectators and negative press.
His father Ted admitted David was ‘distraught’ when he met him, saying the young sports star ‘fell into my arms and said, “I’ve left everybody down.”‘
Growing emotional as he reflected on the backlash he received, David confessed: ‘I don’t think I’ve ever talked about it because I can’t. I find it hard to talk about what I went through because it was so extreme. The whole country hated me.’
Detailing the horrific abuse – which became so bad that he was unable to visit the toilet unattended for fear of being attacked on the way – he continued: ‘Wherever I went, I got abused every day.
‘To walk down the street and see people look at you a certain way, spit at you, abuse you, come up to your face and say some of the things that they said, that’s difficult. I wasn’t eating, I wasn’t sleeping, I was a mess.’
The sport legend, who was just 23 at the time, also detailed the impact it had on his parents, Ted and Sandra, noting: ‘It brought a lot of attention that I would never wish on anyone, let alone my parents and I can’t forgive myself for that.
‘That’s the tough part that happened then. I’m 47 years old now and I beat myself up about it still. Inside it killed me.’
Football legend David is married to former Spice Girl Victoria and they share four children – Brooklyn, 25, Romeo, 21, Cruz, 19, and Harper, 12.
The four-part series saw the Beckhams’ give an intimate insight into their marriage and early romance, their family life, as well as charting David’s footballing career. His documentary amassed a record breaking 3.8million viewers during its premiere week.
According to the Broadcasters Audience Research Board (BARB), the first episode saw 3,813,100 fans tune in.
The second instalment was also a success reaching 2,868,800 viewers by the week ending October 8.
BECKHAM was the streaming service’s topped watched show for two weeks when it was released, with 11,600,000 fans watching globally, according to Netflix’s own data.
