David Beckham has a lot to be proud of after turning 50.
One of the most famous soccer players of all-time and owner of perhaps the best right fit the sport has ever seen, Becks has a healthy family and has found success post-career as a co-owner of Inter Miami.
If you look even further down his highlight reel, he also has his good looks going for him, which is partly due to his amazing hair. The international heartthrob also owns the distinction of being the only athlete ever named People's Sexiest Man Alive.
Over the years, David has rocked some wild hairstyles. Of course, he hasn't always sported the refined look he’s been wearing as of late. He's donned everything from cornrows to Mohawks, and all of the styles haven't always been the most flattering.
Here's our starting 11 for his most iconic hairstyles.
MORE: Beckham at 50 and life after football
11. Cornrows (2003)
Let's be honest, there's one look and one look only that deserves last place on this list.
Cornrows is one hairstyle David regrets trying, and we can honestly see why — it wasn't his best look. In 2003, just before a meet-and-greet with Nelson Mandela in South Africa, David agreed to have his hair braided into cornrows.
"We were there with family and one of Victoria's friends, who is a hairdresser. I asked if she could do something with my hair, and she said, 'Do you want cornrows?' and I said, 'Yeah. I don't know what they are. But yeah," David told The U.S. Sun in 2023.
The soccer star said it was "painful" having the tight hairstyle braided, but he liked the look initially. Later, however, he came to regret the decision. "I got to meet the great Nelson Mandela. And the picture that I've got to Nelson Mandela is me holding his hand with cornrows in my hair. That's my only regret."
David Beckham has had a multitude of haircuts. But meeting someone like Nelson Mandela with cornrows probably wasn't one of his better ones... pic.twitter.com/EY4zNCVH5e
— Football Ramble (@FootballRamble) October 25, 2022
10. Pre-wedding long hair (1999)
When David was dating his now wife, Victoria Beckham, in the 1990s, he was sporting a nearly shoulder-length dirty blonde hairstyle. The Beckhams were married on the Fourth of July in 1999 in Dublin, Ireland, and on their wedding day, David was rocking a longer hairstyle. While his hair didn't quite touch his shoulders, it was definitely one of the edgier looks he's sported.
9. The Buzzcut (2000)
During his adult years, David sported his first buzzcut look in 2000. It seemed almost tragic at the time, as he had great, healthy-looking locks for a man. The bold and edgy hairstyle drew enough attention that it became a huge pop culture moment in the U.K., with other men and young fans also following suit and shaving their heads.
The Inter Miami co-owner later commented on his decision to shave his head in his Netflix docuseries "Beckham."
"I had a hairdresser at the time called Tyler. I said to him, 'I'm gonna cut my hair,' and he was like, 'Are you sure? You really want to do that,'" Beckham recalled, adding, "I never did it to create attention, I'm not that person," he said.
8. A baby Mohawk (2001)
Every time David experiments with longer hairstyles, he tends to get tired of it fairly quickly and opts for a change. He's donned plenty of risque looks over the years, but one of the most eye-catching was probably the mohawk he rocked in 2001.
David shaved the sides of his head nearly bald when he donned a short mohawk-style in the center of his head in 2001. The mini hawk couldn't have been more than 4-5 inches long, although it made a bold statement regardless of its height.
🏴 David Beckham:
— Football Tweet ⚽ (@Football__Tweet) September 11, 2023
🎙️ "One day, when I was at Manchester United, I made myself a Mohawk. I knew Sir Alex Ferguson wasn't going to like it, so the first days of training I put on a hat to hide in the changing room, on the pitch or at meals.
But on game day I had to take my hat… pic.twitter.com/ddgaoMnfbu
7. Frosted tips (2002)
After David and Victoria welcomed their second son, Romeo, in 2002, the soccer star decided he needed a change in his hairstyle. He grew out his locks and bleached the tips of his hair blonde while leaving the rest of his hair a dark shade.
This iconic look helped usher in the frosted tips craze of the 2000s, where other celebrities like Justin Timberlake, Zac Efron, and Aaron Carter even jumped on the trend's wagon. The dimensional hairstyle trend stuck around for nearly a decade.
Looking like beckham with the frosted tips pic.twitter.com/LYdxQsqJMb
— Grand (@grandraps) December 4, 2019
6. The headband (2003)
During the height of his soccer career, David sported a headband look more than once to keep the long locks off his face. It wasn't one of his best looks. However, it was versatile enough to keep his hair neat and pulled back when needed.
5. The ponytail (2004)
Most women love a good ponytail, and men are coming around to it. Although the trend seems to come and go, David has tried to rock a ponytail more than once. He seems to opt for this do on his longer hair days, especially when he's playing soccer.
4. The Pompadour (2010)
The Pompadour is a hairstyle worn by both men and women in which the hair is combed into a high mound at the front of the head. David started wearing a pompadour hairstyle back in 2010. His version of the hairstyle features short sides with a neatly combed, voluminous top in his signature dirty blonde color.
Pompadour is a hairstyle worn by men and women in which the hair is combed into a high mound at the front of the head. David Beckham pic.twitter.com/xmtsV61P5k
— black barbershops (@blackbarbershop) July 27, 2017
3. The man bun (2017)
Man buns have been a controversial topic since they started popping up everywhere in the 2010s. Beckham styled his hair in a man bun in 2017, although he’s tried the controversial style more than once. He sported the look when he attended the Professional Footballers' Association Awards and the amfAR Gala in Cannes that year.
For the event in Cannes, David wore a sleek black tuxedo with his hair pulled back into a tight knot at the crown of his head. He left the man bun partially undone in a semi-sporty style. Whether you love or hate a man bun, he definitely got the style right when he tried it.
MANBUN BECKHAM #MANBUN pic.twitter.com/iwtR26E50l
— Florian 🇵🇱💯 (@Florian_Vienna) April 3, 2017
2. The peroxide blonde look (2021)
The soccer star hasn’t shied away from a peroxide blonde look over the years. Dying his hair the lightest shade of blonde, his stylist can pull his hair to seem to be one of his favorite pastimes whenever he’s looking for a change in the hair department. David last displayed this look in 2021, although he first rocked the look in the ‘90s.
1. The classic textured look (2025)
David is currently rocking what is arguably his best look, a classic, textured haircut.
The dirty blonde hairstyle features closely clipped sides and back, and is longer on top. It gives off a neat and polished vibe and is reminiscent of the clean crewcut he sported during his trip to Macau in 2018, where he opted to wear a summer-friendly low-maintenance style highlighting his chiseled face.
This is the soccer star's most iconic hairstyle, and we hope he keeps it around for a while.