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David Beckham's arrival in Major League Soccer (MLS) will purely and simply give credence, relevance and profile to the MLS, and to professional soccer, in the general United States culture.

David Beckham has become much more than purely an immensely talented soccer player.

Due to his looks, fashion-sense, choice of wife and general marketability, he has become a pop-culture icon, a globally-renowned celebrity and superstar that is feted wherever he goes.

The media throng that covers his every move in the United States will only serve to help promote the sport of soccer in America, and get it onto the front pages of newspapers, giving it unprecedented coverage in the USA.

Whilst David Beckham will help MLS and American soccer in general gain more media space, bigger sponsorships, bigger attendances and more general interest in America, what also cannot be denied is his impact in raising the standards of professional soccer in America.

A player of Beckham's ability, and the fact he's still in the prime of his career, will only serve to attract other immensely talented soccer players to America as a place to play professionally.

In-turn, this will help raise the standards of the MLS, and possibly, one day, the MLS's quality may rival that of the big European leagues.

It's hard to imagine that ever happening, especially for a league only barely more than a decade old, however Beckham's decision to come to the MLS has opened innumeral doors for the league on the global scale.

Already, we've seen such globally-renowned players as Abel Xavier, Cuahtemoc Blanco and Juan Pablo Angel choose to play in the MLS, and with rumors circulating that Thierry Henry could be joining them in 2009, the quality of the MLS stocks are rising by the day.

For the first time in American history, a soccer player, in David Beckham, is viewed as "cool" by the general public.

The interest in soccer is piqued to record levels, and whilst soccer has had peaks and troughs throughout its history in America, the people currently running the game Stateside should ensure that the tidal wave of interest Beckham has brought won't be squandered once Becks hangs up the boots.

Finally, I guess you could say that Beckham has brought a touch of Hollywood glamor to the MLS and to American soccer.

With Hollywood A-Listers such as Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes, and Will and Jada Pinkett-Smith as close friends, suddenly the global profile and sex appeal of the MLS and soccer in America rises immensely.

In short, Beckham's impact on American soccer has been, and will continue to be huge, in so many different ways.

Learn more about this author, Aj Brady.
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