David Beckham nets a dividend bonanza from Netflix show
David Beckham has scooped a $35.8m dividend bonanza from the business that licenses his name on products ranging from overcoats to beer and mattresses.
David Beckham has scooped a $US35.8m ($57.6m) dividend bonanza from the business that licenses his name on products ranging from Boss overcoats to Stella Artois beer and Tempur mattresses.
Accounts for DRJB Holdings, the main holding company behind the Beckham brand, show it more than doubled pre-tax profits from $US16.2m to $US36.2m in the year to December 2023.
The former Manchester United footballer was paid $US12.8m in dividends for the 2023 financial year and another $US23m after that year ended, taking his total payout to nearly $US36m.
The results were the first since Beckham sold control of DRJB to the US-based licensing group Authentic Brands, which paid him a mixture of $US269m in shares and cash for a 55 per cent stake. He now owns 45 per cent.
Including dividends on so-called preference shares, owned by Authentic, DRJB has paid out $US124m. Revenues at DRJB – which stands for David Robert Joseph Beckham – included income from a Netflix documentary about the life of the footballer and his wife, Victoria, the fashion designer and former Spice Girl, which aired in October 2023.
The four-part series was produced by The Studio 99 group, which is owned by DRJB. It said it had been “a resounding success”, achieving a top 10 place in all 90 countries where Netflix tracks audience figures.
DRJB also made fees from Beckham’s name and face appearing on advertising for Tudor watches, EA Sports video games, Panini football stickers, Adidas sportswear, Nespresso coffee capsules, Coty fragrances and Uber Eats, the food delivery service.
Beckham, 49, stopped playing professional football in 2013, but his global appeal has continued to grow, according to DRJB: total followers on the social media platforms Instagram, Facebook and the main Chinese sites rose by 16.4 million to 163 million. DRJB has earned fees from product categories as varied as sports, media and entertainment, cars, fragrance, eyewear and luxury goods.
While critics have suggested the blanket exposure could devalue his consumer appeal if stretched too far, DRJB hailed “the reach and commercialisation” of the brand. Recent endorsement wins include AliExpress, a Chinese online retailer, and SharkNinja air fryers.
The tie-up with Authentic had brought “continued growth and development of the David Beckham brand”, DRJB said in accounts to be filed shortly.
the times
Why you’re so tired all the time – it may not be lack of sleep
From too much exercise to not enough vitamin D, the experts tell us why we’re feeling sluggish, and how to fix it.
Risky route to riches in Outback gold rush
A surge in gold prices has fuelled an increase in wannabe prospectors near Melbourne and almost 100,000 permits have been issued. Is the risk worth the reward?