- Nigeria refuse to play in Libya as Algeria, Cameroon qualify
- Strike-hit Boeing leaves experts puzzled by strategy
- Leweling rockets Germany past Dutch and into Nations League quarterfinals
- Kolo Muani double fires France to win in Belgium
- Italy sweep past Israel in Nations League amid high security
- UN peacekeepers to 'stay in all positions' in Lebanon
- NASA launches probe to study if life possible on icy Jupiter moon
- 'Unique' Ronaldo an example to everyone, says Martinez
- New lawsuits against Sean Combs allege sex assault, including of minor
- Italy begins migrant transfers to Albania with first group of 16
- Google signs nuclear power deal with startup Kairos
- Carsley open to foreign England manager amid Guardiola links
- Pogba hungry to have his football cake after doping ban
- India and Canada expel top envoys in Sikh separatist killing row
- Mbappe says victim of 'fake news' after 'rape' report in Sweden
- Lebanon says 21 killed in strike on northern village
- Netanyahu vows no mercy after deadly Hezbollah drone strike
- Russia could be able to attack NATO by 2030: German intelligence
- EVs seek to regain sales momentum at Paris Motor Show
- Clarke backs Scotland to bounce back from 'tough' run
- Harris, Trump target crucial Pennsylvania as US vote looms
- NASA probe Europa Clipper lifts off for Jupiter's icy moon
- Lebanese Red Cross says 18 killed in strike in north
- Mendy borrowed money from Man City team-mates for legal fees
- Palestinian officials say Israeli forces kill two in West Bank
- Football leagues, unions file EU complaint against FIFA in calendar dispute
- Nigeria boycott AFCON qualifier in Libya after 'inhumane treatment'
- India to recall top envoy to Canada: foreign ministry
- Hezbollah, Israeli troops in 'violent clashes' after drone strike
- China insists won't renounce 'use of force' to take Taiwan as drills end
- Painkiller sale plan to US gives France major headache
- Italy begins landmark migrant transfers to Albania
- Russia jails French researcher for three years
- 'Unsustainable' housing crisis bedevils Spain's socialist govt
- Stocks shrug off China disappointment but oil slides
- New Zealand 4-0 up in America's Cup but British show signs of life
- Russian prosecutor demands 3 years prison for French researcher
- 'Innocent' British nerve agent victim caught in global murder plot: inquiry
- Afghan Taliban vow to implement media ban on images of living things
- Russian prosecutor demands 3 years, 3 months jail for French researcher
- England ready for Pakistan's spin assault in second Test
- New Zealand's Ravindra excited for India Tests with father in crowd
- India's capital bans fireworks to curb air pollution
- Stocks diverge, oil retreats as China disappoints markets
- FIFA to open 'global dialogue' on transfer system after Diarra ruling
- Trio wins economics Nobel for work on wealth inequality
- Starmer vows to cut red tape as he urges foreign investors to 'back' UK
- Ex-Stasi officer jailed over 1974 Berlin border killing
- 'Not viable': Barcelona turns against surging tourism
- Hezbollah says targeted Israeli naval base after deadly drone strike
Beckham says Messi at Inter Miami is 'our gift to America'
David Beckham told AFP in an interview on Wednesday that his Inter Miami franchise signed Lionel Messi as "our gift to America and the MLS".
Former Manchester and Real Madrid midfielder Beckham, speaking on his first ever visit to India and in his role as a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador, admitted he still has to pinch himself when he sees the Argentinian World Cup winner on the teamsheet in Florida.
"It's still hard to believe that when someone turns around to me and says Inter Miami have Lionel Messi in their team, you know," he said.
"It's a very proud thing for me to have as an owner, to have a player like that, the best player in the world, in our team.
"We always knew that bringing Leo to America, not just to Miami, it was our gift to America and the MLS.
"Because someone like that changes the game. You know, someone like that inspires another generation of soccer players.
"And that's why we wanted to bring Leo to the team. Of course, we want to win championships. Of course, we want to be the best team in the league.
"But one of the reasons why we bought him was to also inspire the next generation of soccer players in America.
"To want to be soccer players. So bringing him does that and it's an important thing for us."
Former Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain star Messi shocked the football world when he shunned stratospheric offers from Saudi Arabia and elsewhere to join Inter Miami in July, seven months after he had led Argentina to World Cup glory in Qatar.
The 36-year-old went on to light up Major League Soccer with some stellar performances but was unable to carry Inter Miami into the playoffs this season.
- 'Faces light up' -
Beckham, 48, who has turned a successful playing career that included captaining England and winning the Champions League with Manchester United into a high-profile role as a rights advocate and style icon, is the co-owner of Inter Miami.
He was speaking to AFP in Mumbai before attending the start of the Cricket World Cup semi-final between India and New Zealand, in an interview for which questions had to be vetted in advance.
Beckham explained that his first contact with the UN children's charity began when he was a teenager.
"My first involvement with UNICEF was when I was 17 years old in Thailand when I was there with Manchester United, and I went to a women's care centre," he said.
"But obviously with my travels over the years, I've seen how young girls are getting left behind, they're not getting the same rights and the same equal opportunities as the boys.
"So our focus has really been on girls in the last five to 10 years and that is the same here."
Beckham said he was convinced sport could play a key role in children's lives, as it had in his own.
"It gave me the foundation to have leadership, teamwork, discipline, focus. And just to have that confidence," said the father of four children.
"I've seen when I've gone into different villages around the world with UNICEF, when I take a football into this village, these children's faces light up.
"For that time when I'm playing football with them or they're kicking a football around, they forget about everything else that is going on around them that is not good."
H.E.Young--AMWN