Soccer: Beckham denies claim he cheated on Posh

LONDON - England soccer captain David Beckham angrily denied last night allegations that he had an affair with his former personal assistant.

English newspaper reports said Beckham had an intimate relationship with Rebecca Loos, 26.

The News of the World printed explicit telephone text messages which it claimed were sent by the Real Madrid player.

Beckham denied the claims, which he described as "ludicrous".

His wife, Victoria, clashed with photographers at London's Heathrow Airport as she left for an Easter break in Switzerland with her parents, brother and two sons, Brooklyn and Romeo.

Police later confirmed that they were investigating allegations of assault following an "altercation".

The reports alleged that Beckham invited Loos, who worked for the sports personality management company which looked after the Beckhams, back to his hotel after a night out drinking last September 18.

It was reported to be one in a series of four meetings before the footballer broke off his relations with Loos and her SFX Group last December.

The News of the World claimed Beckham had not seen Loos since then, but printed a series of explicit text messages between the pair, the most recent having been sent only last month.

Loos' brother said he had received a tearful telephone call from his sister, admitting that the allegations were true.

She had previously kept the affair secret from her family.

Speaking from his family home in Madrid, John Loos said: "I had no idea Beckham was cheating on Victoria with my sister.

"I am overwhelmed with shock. My parents knew nothing of this. I would have known if they had."

In a statement released via his agent, Beckham said: "During the past few months I have become accustomed to reading more and more ludicrous stories about my private life.

"What appeared this morning is just one further example.

"The simple truth is that I am very happily married, have a wonderful wife and two very special kids. There is nothing that any third party can do to change these facts."

It is not yet clear whether the couple, who threatened to sue the Sunday Mirror last November over allegations that their marriage was in jeopardy, will take legal action against the News of the World.

However, a spokeswoman for the newspaper said: "We fully appreciate the significance of the report and stand by our story 100 per cent."


- NZPA