- author, Zarina McDonald
- role, Business reporter
David Beckham has signed a deal to become a global ambassador for AliExpress, the online retail platform owned by Chinese tech giant Alibaba.
The announcement comes just as the Euro soccer tournament is due to kick off in Germany next month.
The company did not disclose how much it would pay the former England captain.
In March, AliExpress signed an exclusive e-commerce platform partnership with the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA).
The deal will see the football superstar turned entrepreneur become the face of AliExpress’ “Score More” promotion during matches.
“AliExpress is helping bring UEFA EURO 2024 even closer to fans this summer by offering great prizes right along with the action on the pitch,” said David Beckham.
AliExpress joins other major Chinese companies sponsoring the euro, including electric car maker BYD and electronics giant Vivo.
Since ending his football career more than a decade ago, Beckham has been associated with numerous brands and major sporting events.
According to the Sunday Times Rich List, Beckham and his former Spice Girl and fashion designer wife Victoria have a combined net worth of £455 million ($581.6 million).
The tournament is expected to be the biggest sporting event of the year after the Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games.
A total of 2.7 million tickets have been sold for the tournament, which runs from June 14 to July 14 in 10 cities, including Munich and Hamburg.
According to UEFA, a total of 5.2 billion people watched live television coverage of Euro 2020 worldwide, with 328 million tuning in to watch the final, which England lost on penalties.
