Garber said Beckham’s move to the Los Angeles Galaxy has been hugely successful and that contrary to some reports the England midfielder would return to the USA after this summer’s finals in South Africa.
“David will be back after the World Cup, no doubt about that,” Garber told Press Association Sport. “He has been a success. There are always going to be people, particularly in England, that look at everything and don’t see the positives.
“Our league is on the map globally, he’s one of the most popular people on the planet and he plays in Major League Soccer for Los Angeles Galaxy. That in itself has shown the world we are serious in that we have one of the great international players is in our league.
“Have there been challenges with him going back and forth? Absolutely, but sometimes that kind of buzz is good. Football is a phenomenon in the United States now.”
Garber is hoping that the Beckham factor will increase interest in England’s opening match of the World Cup against the USA.
“I think it’s important that England has a good World Cup – except for the first match! It will be one of the most popular sports events in America for quite some time. ESPN is going to promote it more than any other event in their history, it’s a rematch of the 1950 World Cup match which we surprisingly won.
“It’s Beckham v Landon Donovan (a Galaxy team-mate) and that could be a great story. I hope David Beckham plays and he’s certainly been spending a lot of time in Milan to give him the best chance of playing.”
