If you thought retiring from professional football would have dimmed David Beckham’s star power, think again. Last week Becks was in Shanghai as part of his new role as an ambassador for China’s Super League. But his appearance at Tongji University soon went badly awry as a thousand fans jostled to get close to the Englishman. Seven were injured in the chaos and riot police had to be called in. Beckham was quickly spirited away to ensure his safety but later sent a weibo message wishing a speedy recovery to those injured at the event. Beckham has also been responding to questions about why he accepted his new role in China, particularly given the litany of scandal in Chinese football. “When I first came on as ambassador of the Super League, I was well aware of what has happened in the past, and people have questioned why I want to be involved in something that in the past had a bad name for corruption,” he said. “For me, the past is the past, this is the future.”
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