David Beckham has supported UNICEF since his days at Manchester United. In July 2001, he travelled to Thailand with the team on their pre-season tour. There he visited the UNICEF-supported Kredtrakarn Centre, meeting children as young as five who had suffered exploitation at the hands of adults. In 2003, David, as part of the team, helped to launch the UNICEF UK ‘End Child Exploitation’ Campaign.
In January 2005, the former England football captain became a Goodwill Ambassador with a special focus on UNICEF's Sports for Development programme. David's first job as Ambassador was a visit to UNICEF’s Supply Division in Copenhagen, to see for himself the crucial work being done to aid 1.5 million children affected by the tsunami in South Asia. David then launched a global appeal to raise funds to support UNICEF's urgent humanitarian work in the region.
David has pledged his support for the current ‘Unite for Children, Unite against AIDS’ campaign and has taken part in a series of films to promote the campaign’s messages. He also captained ‘Team UNICEF’ in a special short film produced in association with MTV and FIFA. Featuring some of the World’s top football players, the film highlighted UNICEF’s 2006 FIFA World Cup theme ‘Unite for Children, Unite for Peace’.