David Beckham on thriving under pressure and learning from mistakes
ReThinking
TED
4.7 • 626 Ratings
🗓️ 31 March 2026
⏱️ 27 minutes
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Summary
In 1998, soccer star David Beckham made international news at his first World Cup when he lost his cool and got a critical red card. But he went on to lead his teams to numerous titles, become runner up for World Player of the Year, and even be knighted for his contributions to the game. In this episode, David joins Adam at the World Economic Forum in Davos to talk about the thrill of performing under pressure, strategies for managing strong emotions, and the unifying power of sport. Adam also grills David about his competitive drive and his unwavering commitment to showing up early.
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- Follow David Beckham on Instagram and at davidbeckham.com/
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ReThinking is produced by Cosmic Standard. Our Senior Producer is Jessica Glazer, our Engineer is Aja Simpson, our Technical Director is Jacob Winik, and our Executive Producer is Eliza Smith.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | For my motivation, there's nothing better than playing in front of 100,000 fans. |
| 0:05.2 | I'd much rather do that than play in front of 10 people, you know, and that's what I miss about the game. |
| 0:10.9 | It almost sounds like you miss the pressure. |
| 0:12.8 | It's a strange thing. The more the pressure, the better I seem to perform. |
| 0:19.7 | Hey, everyone, it's Adam Grant. |
| 0:21.6 | Welcome back to Rethinking, my podcast with Ted on The Science of What Makes |
| 0:25.0 | Us Tick. |
| 0:26.0 | I'm an organizational psychologist, and I'm taking you inside the minds of fascinating |
| 0:29.7 | people to explore new thoughts and new ways of thinking. |
| 0:42.8 | Soccer star David Beckham made his official debut when he was 17 years old, playing for Manchester United. |
| 0:49.8 | He became a national name in the UK when he scored a goal from midfield on opening day in 1996, and he was only 21. |
| 0:57.5 | In 1998, he made international news at his first World Cup match, he got a critical red card and England ended up losing the game. |
| 1:00.4 | He went on to lead his teams to numerous titles, |
| 1:02.6 | become runner-up for World Player of the Year, |
| 1:05.6 | and be named one of the greatest living players by Pele. |
| 1:10.2 | Last year, David was knighted in honor of his contributions to the beautiful game. |
| 1:15.0 | I had the chance to sit down with David at the 26 World Economic Forum in Davos. |
| 1:21.3 | We talked about pressure, confronting it, embracing it, and managing it during the toughest moments of his career. |
| 1:23.2 | We also talked about competition. |
| 1:26.7 | By his own admission, David does not like to lose. |
| 1:27.9 | Even today. |
| 1:33.2 | You beat me here. |
... |
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