David Beckham tpointed out that England’s triumph at the European Women’s Championship last year – at Wembley, in front of 87,192 spectators – had inspired a new generation of girls in the country to take up sport and his own daughter was one of them.

“The evolution of women’s football in England has been incredibleBeckham told Reuters today (11/15).

“We’ve seen what that has done. I have seen what it has done for my daughter. My daughter would turn around during the Euros and say, “Dad, are you going to take me to one of these games because I look up to these girls and I want us to win the Euros.” We won the Euro in our own stadium, in our country and then it inspired the next generation of unpredictable footballers and that’s important“, he added.

Beckham, who traveled to India this week as a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador, said there was no reason why the women’s game could not be as important as the men’s game:

“I have seen this growth and it can happen all over the world. It’s just that people need to support it, believe in it, believe in children’s rights and gender equality and that’s the most important thing to focus on“, emphasized the 48-year-old.

“I have watched the England women’s team play 10 years ago in front of probably 2,000 fans and now in a sold out stadium at Wembley. And every game played in the women’s league now, every stadium is sold out.»

Mental health was a prominent theme in Beckham’s recent four-part Netflix documentary with the former Manchester United player detailing the abuse he suffered after his infamous red card at the 1998 World Cup, which made him perhaps the most hated man in England:

“I love where we are now because people can talk about their mental health“, he said.

“When I was growing up in Manchester and playing for Manchester United, it wasn’t talked about and there are certain players who went through a lot at a very young age».