Beckhams win bid to gag nanny

LONDON - David and Victoria Beckham have won a legal fight to gag a former nanny from making more allegations about their marriage after she sold a story to a UK tabloid newspaper.

Lawyers acting for Abbie Gibson, 27, told the High Court she would not make further allegations about the private life of the soccer star and his wife, a former Spice Girl singer.

The couple had previously failed to stop the story in the News of the World newspaper being published last Sunday.

The England soccer captain and his wife failed in a bid to prevent Gibson or anyone else repeating the allegations made on Sunday, as the judge ruled it would be "futile to try to prevent further circulation".

Both the paper and lawyers for Gibson said they accepted the ruling because they had told their full story and Gibson could repeat it. Her lawyer said she had never been motivated by money.

The News of the World said they printed the story because they wanted to "expose the truth behind Brand Beckham".

"The Beckhams have repeatedly lied publicly," the newspaper said in a statement. "This issue could and should have been resolved outside the courts."

Under the agreement, Gibson will not disclose any further information about the couple pending either a trial or a further court order.

The Beckhams released a statement after the hearing saying it was an unfortunate step to take but hopefully it would "protect the privacy of our family".

The media had reported Gibson received 300,000 pounds (NZ$782,000) for the story but it was made clear in court this was not the case. Neither the Beckhams nor Gibson were present in court.

The Beckhams' six-year marriage came under close scrutiny last year following tabloid allegations that Beckham had had an affair with his personal assistant Rebecca Loos - a claim he has ridiculed.

The Real Madrid midfielder is one of the most widely recognised sportsmen in the world with a string of endorsements to his name and regularly features on the front and back pages of the British press.

His wife Victoria found fame as one of the Spice Girls pop group. She gave birth to their third son, Cruz, in February.

- REUTERS