David Beckham's Friendship With Gordon Ramsay Is Deeper Than A Bromance

Former Manchester United midfielder David Beckham retired in 2013, but he remains one of the most recognizable footballers, even a decade later. Naturally, Beckham still keeps in touch with many of his former teammates, including Paul Scholes, Ryan Riggs, Gary Neville, and Phil Neville — all of whom are Man U royalty. In particular, Gary and Beckham are especially close, with the latter serving as Becks' best man when he married Victoria Beckham. Speaking to The Guardian in 2014, Gary explained that they became close when rooming together. "When I had my house in Bolton, David would stay when Victoria was away, and he'd make food for me all the time," he said.

David isn't just friends with the footballing set, though. The model and football ambassador has also cultivated relationships with those outside the sporting world, including Adam Levine, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, Usher, George Clooney, Elton John, Brad Pitt, and others, according to The Things. Clearly, the former England captain is likable — Johnson even called him "one of the best dudes I know" on Twitter in 2014.

Since David relocated from London to Los Angeles, his social circles have grown to encompass Hollywood royalty. It's unsurprising, given he is one of a handful of athletes who dabbled in modeling and acting. Couple that with the fact that Victoria is one-fifth of the Spice Girls, and it actually makes sense. But David does have one friend who might surprise you.

Gordon Ramsay is a celebrity chef, so he's pretty far out of David Beckham's sporting and fashion lifestyle. But both Brits are dedicated family men, which is what brought them together. "Over the past 10 years, [David and I] naturally got on," Ramsay told The U.K. Sun in 2017. "The connection is our ambition to get all eight children through school, college, university, and then dust ourselves down, when the kids are in their 20s, as having been decent parents," he added, explaining that he and David "feed off each other." Like David, Ramsay is a celebrity, but he's determined to give his children as normal an upbringing as possible. For example, just because he is wealthy, doesn't mean his kids reap the rewards of his cushy lifestyle. Ramsay previously told The Telegraph that his children don't fly first class, because, "They haven't worked anywhere near hard enough to afford that." Instead, they are given $50 a week to pay for their phones and bus money!

Likewise, David prioritizes his own family brood. "We've always been strict parents," Victoria Beckham told "Good Morning Britain" (via Hello! Magazine). In 2019, David told GQ that he believes hard work to be the cornerstone of success; consequently, he's modeled a strong work ethic for his children. "I tell the kids they have to make choices, sometimes give things up. If your friends are going out on a Friday night, maybe you can't," he said.

So we know David Beckham and Gordon Ramsay run a tight ship at home, but they still love to have fun together. Case in point: In 2017, the two Brits went head-to-head on Ramsay's cooking show, "The F Word," where they competed to see who could make the better risotto. Even though he's left the pitch behind, David still plays to win. The ensuing competition was fierce, but Ramsay ultimately won with his grilled corn and Dungeness crab risotto.

Outside of the kitchen, David and Ramsay hang out together with — you guessed it! — their families. In 2016, The Independent reported that both sets of families took a group selfie to ring in the New Year. To mark the occasion, Ramsay's daughter also posted a pic of her hamming it up with David's oldest son, Brooklyn Beckham.

As good friends do, Ramsay and David step up to support each other's milestone moments. When Brooklyn married Nicola Peltz in 2022, David and Victoria Beckham requested that Ramsay oversee the food menu, per The U.K. Sun. That same year, Ramsay backed David when the soccer star asked fans to donate to Unicef in support of the Ukrainian crisis. "Keep up the incredible work @davidbeckham & @unicef support the children of Ukraine by donating here," Ramsay wrote on his Instagram Stories (via Hello!). From cheering each other on to spending time together with their respective families, these two Brits share an unbreakable bond. We love to see it!