Take Away English-David Beckham 贝克汉姆

The million-dollar man

The world's most famous footballer, David Beckham, is leaving his club, Real Madrid, to sign for the American side, LA Galaxy¹. Some reports say he'll earn about a million dollars a week, which will make him the world’s third highest-earning sports star.

But why has the former England captain decided² to leave the most high-profile club in the world to play in a country where football, or soccer as Americans call it, isn't popular? Beckham says he relishes³ the challenge of playing in the USA and wants to build a bridge between America and the rest of the sporting world by making football a major sport. He's already set up a soccer academy for children in Los Angeles to help promote the game.

Some football pundits⁴ have been surprised by Beckham's decision saying it effectively means the end of his career as a serious footballer. But others, such as the former Manchester United and England player, Sir Bobby Charlton, think it was predictable. He says "it seems it was on the cards that at some time in his career that he would finish up in that sort of position in Hollywood." David Beckham and his pop-star wife, Victoria, like the Hollywood lifestyle. And, of course, there's his huge pay packet, which will be made up by his salary, sponsorship contracts, and a share of his new club’s profits.

Others think that David Beckham decided to move because he's been unhappy at Real Madrid. He hasn't won any major trophies⁵ during his four-year stint⁶ there and he seems to have fallen out of favour with the manager, Fabio Capello: Beckham has spent most of the season on the bench.

But Beckham has no regrets about his time in Madrid. He said that playing with the likes of Zinedine Zidane, from France, and Ronaldo, from Brazil, has been the biggest honour in his career.

David Beckham’s already played for two of the biggest clubs in the world: Manchester United and Real Madrid. He's been the captain of England and now he could become one of the richest athletes in history. If he manages to conquer America then, some say, he'll be the most popular British export since the Beatles.

GLOSSARY 词汇表
to sign 签约 former 前任 soccer 英式足球 build a bridge 搭建桥梁 promote 推广 on the cards 可能 sponsorship contracts 赞助合约 fallen out of favour 失宠 stint 期间 the biggest honour 最大荣誉	highest-earning 最高收入 high-profile 引人注目的 relishes the challenge 迎接挑战 set up 建立 pundits 权威人士, 专家 Hollywood lifestyle 好莱坞生活方式 a share of 分红, 享有其中一份 on the bench 坐冷板凳 the likes of 象…这样的人 to conquer 征服

 

1 galaxy   

n.星系；银河系；一群(杰出或著名的人物)

参考例句：

• The earth is one of the planets in the Galaxy.地球是银河系中的星球之一。
• The company has a galaxy of talent.该公司拥有一批优秀的人才。

2 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

3 relishes   

n.滋味( relish的名词复数 )；乐趣；（大量的）享受；快乐v.欣赏( relish的第三人称单数 )；从…获得乐趣；渴望

参考例句：

• The meat relishes of pork. 这肉有猪肉味。 来自辞典例句
• The biography relishes too much of romance. 这篇传记中传奇色彩太浓。 来自辞典例句

4 pundits   

n.某一学科的权威，专家( pundit的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The pundits disagree on the best way of dealing with the problem. 如何妥善处理这一问题，专家众说纷纭。 来自辞典例句
• That did not stop Chinese pundits from making a fuss over it. 这并没有阻止中国的博学之士对此大惊小怪。 来自互联网

5 trophies   

n.（为竞赛获胜者颁发的）奖品( trophy的名词复数 )；奖杯；（尤指狩猎或战争中获得的）纪念品；（用于比赛或赛跑名称）奖

参考例句：

• His football trophies were prominently displayed in the kitchen. 他的足球奖杯陈列在厨房里显眼的位置。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The hunter kept the lion's skin and head as trophies. 这猎人保存狮子的皮和头作为纪念品。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

6 stint   

v.节省，限制，停止；n.舍不得化，节约，限制；连续不断的一段时间从事某件事

参考例句：

• He lavished money on his children without stint.他在孩子们身上花钱毫不吝惜。
• We hope that you will not stint your criticism.我们希望您不吝指教。