David Beckham: For The Love Of The Game

Football has given me everything.

Now that my professional career is over,

it's never been more important to me to give something back...

so I've organised a major initiative for my charitable fund,

ending in a game at Old Trafford.

But before the match here in ten days,

I want to be first person to play a game of football on every continent.

On my travels,

I hope to visit people in some of the most challenging environments.

I want to see how the power of football

can unite people around the world.

'Joining me on the trip are two of my oldest friends, Simon and Dave.'

- Morning. - Morning.

Morning, morning.

'They work with me closely and I trust them completely.

'Well, most of the time anyway.'

Is the chef working today?

I can't believe you called Victoria "the chef."

I'm actually looking forward to...

each place and each game for different reasons.

Obviously, the rainforest...

I've never played in a rainforest before.

Well, you don't have to worry about...

More importantly, you don't have to worry about an egg for me.

- You're not having egg? - No. - Why didn't you tell me that before I...?

I got one slice of bacon so you might have to have an egg.

No, you have no choice if I'm doing it.

- You'll be eating bread. - Can you cut around the whites?

I know you're looking forward to Buenos Aires.

I'm excited about Buenos Aires.

- You haven't been to Buenos Aires before then? - No.

Are you slightly worried about going there

in the sense of the reaction you'll get?

Actually, up until right this minute, I hadn't even thought about that.

Buenos Aires to the Antarctic,

which is a bold move.

A bit of a silly question here.

What do you wear when you're playing football on ice?

It'll have to be snow boots.

- It's going to have to be snow boots. - Or skates. Can you skate?

We are in the lap of the gods.

If we can't get there, which nobody has been able to get there

for the last few weeks,

it ain't going to happen.

We could always recreate it and go to London Zoo in the penguin bit

and just walk past, kick a ball and walk out of London Zoo.

No-one knows.

Can you keep a secret?

What next?

Better get some sleep.

I have just ten days to play a match on all seven continents.

I'll be visiting places where people are being helped

by various charities, including my own "7" fund.

I will see how football is helping to transform lives.

From Papa New Guinea to Nepal,

Djibouti, Argentina,

Antarctica, Miami

and then finally back to Manchester.

To achieve this, every single part of the trip

needs to go like clockwork.

Starting with an 18-hour flight

to my first stop, Australasia.

Movin' On Up by Primal Scream

Papua New Guinea, I have heard such great things about the place

and the people.

Ready when you are.

What if they boo?

I shouldn't think they're going to boo.

- David, welcome to Papua New Guinea... - Thank you.

I am the minister for sports and national events.

- Thank you very much. - Thank you for having me. Thank you.

- Welcome to Papua New Guinea. - Thank you.

When we used to travel with Man United and Real Madrid,

we always used to have amazing welcomes

every time that we landed somewhere.

So, obviously, since I've stopped playing,

I don't tend to get too many welcomes like that, to be honest.

Hi!

Hey, how are you?

It's good to get it started, actually.

The trip was kind of put together pretty quickly.

Seven continents in a really short space of time

is an ambitious one

but I want to see places where we're raising the money for

and that need a light shining on them.

It's beautiful.

I mean, the landscape is incredible.

It's incredible.

I'm looking forward to my first match tomorrow morning,

but first, I'm visiting a farming village in the highlands.

It's amazing to think that Papua New Guinea

is such rich, fertile farmland.

They can grow almost anything here,

and yet they have a problem with child malnutrition.

- Welcome to Kumgna village... - Thank you.

- ..Mr David Beckham. - Thank you.

Gideon will be playing in tomorrow's game

but first, he shows me around the village.

Nearly half of the children under five in Papua New Guinea

aren't getting the nutritious food they need

to grow up healthy and strong.

So, tell me, why is there so much malnutrition?

Because the crops... You see, the crops are great.

The vegetables that you have...

Yes.

- It's used for income? - Yes.

No, of course.

- Kids are playing football. - They are. In the rain.

I'd like to go and see.

- You want to see them? - Yeah.

As a parent, it's very sad to see

what goes on in communities like this one.

Young children that are not being given the chance

to live healthy, normal lives.

Luckily, UNICEF and other charities here

are helping educate local parents

about the benefits of good nutrition.

The challenge about this is,

I have to be fit for the 14th of November so...

I'm not worried about injuries

but there's a few people on the trip

that are worried about me getting injured, I think.

Hello.

How are you?

Good?

You might want to jump out of first gear.

Do you want to drive?

You sound like Victoria.

It's more beautiful than I expected.

I knew it was going to be amazing

but, I mean, it's stunning.

I'm on my way to pick up the team bus.

What are you going to do if the game gets a bit competitive?

Step off.

I mean, I'll have to get involved.

I can't not get involved.

- I have to say, mate, they look a bit fit. - They do look fit.

The lads I will be playing with are from intertribal teams,

made up of policemen and farmers.

With produce being the main source of income,

there's been a history of tribal warfare over land.

Football has gone some way in bringing communities together.

Oh, I'm driving. I didn't know I was driving.

This is great.

- You are doing well. - Thank you.

You drive like an experienced coach driver.

The bridge? That ok?

- Do you want to get out? - Jump off here and...

Ready for the match?

Looks like a German hat, this.

At least the tea will be warm.

This is not our look.

This is exactly what my nan used to have.

Hello.

- Are we actually going to play with a banana football? - Yeah.

That's actually not bad.

How's your touch with that?

That's not bad, actually.

- Bananas? - Bananas, yeah.

When they dry down.

How are you? Nice to meet you.

Ok.

As we're going to be playing with a traditional ball,

the gaffer shows me how to make one.

I don't think my ball skills are going down too well.

- What do you think of the pitch, David? - Perfect.

I'll have to stay on the right-hand side the first half

and the left-hand side in the second half, by the look of it.

It's a bit bare on the other side.

Already knackered.

It's the first match he's going to be playing.

The match will last for 40 minutes.

I'm going to play a half for each team.

Let's have a good game.

Ready to play?

Seeing the enthusiasm for the sport in this remote village,

you'd never think Papa New Guinea's national team

sit 203rd out of 209 in the football world rankings.

The yellows open the scoring.

Not my most graceful goal ever, but we got one back.

Half-time.

With the game evenly poised at 1-1,

it's time for a real ball

and for me to swap sides.

Gideon, who took me around the village yesterday,

comes on and makes an immediate impression.

With the game in the balance,

it's time for a super sub.

Ah, take it right, then.

Orange throw.

Penalty!

'The game finishes 2-1.

'Our matchwinner is six-year-old Noah.

'Noah lives with his family in the village.'

Can you ask Noah what he had for breakfast and for lunch today?

His breakfast was

weet potato... - Sweet potato... - ..and water. - ..And water.

- They do have sweet potato every meal. - Every day, every meal.

No protein.

So I heard, to compensate for the children not eating