David Beckham makes headlines

Brand Beckham is back in the news. This time it has nothing to do with the Spice Girls tour or Victoria's homage to Amy Winehouse's beehive hairdo, whom she apparently regards as a true style inspiration (a day after Karl Lagerfeld declared Winehouse to be the new Brigit Bardot, but that's another story.) This week, dear readers, all eyes are on David Beckham. Beckham this week revealed one of his most intimate photos to date as the new face - and legs - of Armani Underwear. The full-frontal shot is the LA Galaxy star's first US advert for the Italian underwear giant, with several more planned for the new season.

According to reports, Beckham has signed a three-year deal, rumoured to be worth up to $20 million and his images will be seen on billboards in major cities such as New York, Los Angeles, London, Milan, Rome, Paris and Tokyo.

The ad will be used to boost Beckham's US fan base when the ad debuts in a special gatefold in the February edition of Vanity Fair USA, according to China Daily. In Britain, however, the ad has been causing headline fodder in the tabloid press with Beckham appearing spread-legged in the ad. "Is that John Darwin's canoe in your pants or are you just pleased to see us?" wondered The Sun, in an editorial headlined "Swollenballs".

The Daily Mail, however, took a rather more serious view of Beckham's foray into the world of underwear marketing, decrying his poster as "gay erotica" and the man himself as "the male equivalent of a Page Three tart".

Currently the football icon also has multi-million pound deals with with Adidas, Pepsi, Motorola and perfume maker Coty.

Image: Beckham