Despite being one of the most recognisable wearers of Manchester United’s iconic number 7 shirt, David Beckham almost never wore the number again at club level for the rest of his career following his Old Trafford exit in 2003.

At Real Madrid, Los Blancos legend Raúl had already made the number 7 his own, so Becks had to look elsewhere for his squad number. Fair enough, Raúl had earned it. But navigating the locker room politics of Galactico-packed 2000’s Real Madrid was not an easy task. He had to search elsewhere for numeric inspiration.

Citing his respect for NBA all-time great Michael Jordan, Beckham selected 23 for his number at Real Madrid. Confusingly, he also kept it following his move stateside to LA Galaxy. Surely the relatively lowly MLS side would be fully prepared to fulfil any of Becks’ ambitions, including the small gesture of making him the club’s number 7, right?

Ever the pragmatist, Beckham surely elected to keep the uncommon-for-football-superstars number 23 as a continued homage to Michael Jordon in the country that knew him best. This arrangement further solidified his image as an all-timer in the eyes of the budding US soccer fanbase, newly-enthused by his arrival from the far-away footballing utopia known as “Europe”. Smart guy. 

His moves to AC Milan and PSG would see him vary the selections slightly, opting for the reverse digit arrangement of 32. He also donned 17 as he made his final England appearance in 2009.

And while his United career is synonymous with that iconic number 7 jersey, earlier in his career Becks had also rocked 28, 24 and 10 at United as an up-and-comer in the first team. Seeing him wear 10 just feels weird, doesn’t it?