The bedroom walls of young football fans all around the world are already adorned with posters of England's favourite son, David Beckham. And now those who find themselves in the grip of Beckham-mania need not settle for a two-dimensional likeness, because a new statuette of the footie ace is about to hit the shelves.
Model manufacturer Airfix, better known for its replica warplanes, is launching a new set of figures of the England soccer team. Football fanatics who would like a miniature Beckham – or indeed a Michael Owen or Wayne Rooney – can now pick up their chosen hero in the local high street.
"When Airfix first launched a model of the Spitfire plane 50 years ago it reflected every boy's dream to be a fighter pilot," said a spokesman from the company. "Nowadays most kids want to be the next David Beckham or Michael Owen, so Airfix is evolving its market to attract younger fans to the brand."
With the original Airfix planes, part of the fun was building the model from a set of unassembled parts. And the same is true with their new models, because the England squad does not arrive match-fit. Instead the kits, which will go on sale next month, contain 20 parts per player, along with paints, glue and brushes.
The real David Beckham, meanwhile, was all in one piece as he did a spot of shopping in Madrid. It seems the multi-faceted midfielder includes cooking among his many skills, because he picked up some goodies from posh grocery store Vazquez on his way home from training. The 28-year-old happily chatted with employees at the shop, which includes King Juan Carlos among its customers, before heading home to his family.
Photo: © Alphapress.com
