Victoria Beckham and David Beckham got candid about issues they faced in their first years of marriage — including infidelity rumors — in their new documentary.
Netflix’s Beckham debuted on Wednesday, October 4, with Victoria, 49, recalling her choice to stay in the U.K. while David, 48, moved to Spain in 2003 to play for Real Madrid. As David focused on his pro soccer career, models Rebecca Loos and Sarah Marbeck claimed they each had affairs with him.
“It was the most unhappy I have ever been in my entire life,” Victoria explained, describing how she “internalized” the trauma for the sake of her husband. “It wasn’t that I felt unheard because I was always mindful of the focus that he needed.”
The fashion designer, who exchanged vows with David in 1999, subsequently made the move to Spain.
“It was the hardest period [of our marriage] because it felt like the world was against us,” she noted. “Here’s the thing — we were against each other, if I’m being completely honest.”
Victoria called that period of time a “nightmare” which she “resented,” adding, “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 like 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.”
She continued: “It was an absolute circus — and everyone loves it when the circus comes to town, right? Unless you’re in it.”
David, for his part, got emotional as he weighed in on how the alleged infidelity affected their relationship. (He denied the rumors with a public statement in 2003.)
“I think we both felt at the time that we were not losing each other, but growing. I don’t know how we got through it, in all honesty,” he confessed. “Victoria is everything to me, to see her hurt was incredibly difficult, but we’re fighters. And at that time, we needed to fight for each other, we needed to fight for our family. And what we had was worth fighting for. But ultimately, it is our private life.”
Victoria and David, who share sons Brooklyn 24, Romeo, 21, Cruz, 18, and daughter Harper, 12, have previously addressed speculation about the state of their marriage. In 2017, David slammed assumptions that he and Victoria were headed for a split.
“We’re a strong family unit,” he said on BBC Radio 4’s Desert Island Discs. “We’ve got strong parents. We were brought up with the right values. Of course you make mistakes over the years, and we all know marriage is difficult at times. It’s about working through it. We know each other better than anybody. People have talked about, ‘Do we stay together because it’s a brand?’ Of course not. We stay together because we love each other, because we have four amazing children.”
Victoria, meanwhile, waved off public concern during a 2018 interview for British Vogue, saying, “People have been making things up about our relationship for 20 years. We both realize that we are stronger together than we are as individuals.”
Despite the naysayers, the pair have frequently used social media to offer glimpses of their lasting love.
“They say he isn’t funny, they say I never smile, they said it wouldn’t last 😂 Today we celebrate 23 years being married. David you are my everything, I love you so much!!!! 💕,” the former Spice Girls member captioned a July 2022 Instagram post in honor of their anniversary.
David, for his part, gushed about the life he built with his wife, writing via Instagram at the time, “23 years ago today Posh became Mrs Beckham , but she will always be Posh ❤️ Happy Anniversary WOW 23 years & 4 beautiful kiddies ❤️❤️❤️❤️ I love you , we all love you ❤️.”
