David Beckham 'was victim of £1m blackmail plot over his emails to advisers': Messages 'became public after the firm refused to pay the money'

  • Ex-football star David Beckham, 41, allegedly wrote emails to his PR manager
  • In one, he allegedly referred to the honours committee as 'unappreciative c****'
  • But it has now been revealed that he could have been a victim of a blackmail plot 

By Abe Hawken For Mailonline

Published: 20:19 EST, 5 February 2017 | Updated: 15:47 EST, 6 February 2017

It has now been revealed that the former England captain (pictured) could have been a victim of a blackmail plot 

It has now been revealed that the former England captain (pictured) could have been a victim of a blackmail plot 

Former England football captain David Beckham was reportedly a victim of a £1million blackmail plot over hacked emails.

The 41-year-old allegedly wrote an explicit email to his PR manager, Simon Oliveria, to say it was a 'f****** joke' that singer Katherine Jenkins was awarded an OBE.

He allegedly wrote the private message after he missed out on a knighthood, while other emails are said to show him call the honours committee 'unappreciative c****.

But it now seems the former Manchester United and Real Madrid midfielder could have been a victim of a targeted blackmail plot.

The emails were passed to the Football Leaks website after the firm run by his advisers refused to pay the hackers, reports Tom Bryant at the Daily Mirror. 

A source told the newspaper that Beckham - who earned 115 caps playing for England - was simply 'caught in the crossfire'.

The messages were reportedly accessed after criminals - thought to be using Russian servers - hacked documents from the sports agency run by Mr Oliveria.  

They demanded one million euros - almost £900,000 - or they would pass on the material they had acquired, according to the Mirror.  

The hackers went to Doyen Sports, which are part of Mr Oliveria's Doyen Global agency based in Portugal. 

They sent an email and attempted to 'blackmail' the business team - who called the police at the beginning of 2016.

A source told the paper: 'They said we have all this information and you have to pay up. It was blackmail, pure and simple.

'The investigation has been going on behind the scenes for some time and involved several prominent companies.

'The hack wasn't targeted at David at all – it was very much a fishing expedition but David has been caught in the crossfire.'

Beckham (pictured with his wife, Victoria) allegedly wrote private messages after he missed out on a knighthood

Beckham (pictured with his wife, Victoria) allegedly wrote private messages after he missed out on a knighthood

The alleged blackmailer used the name Artem Lovuzov and said the leak is 'a lot bigger' than they imagined when he contacted Doyen Sports. 

And after not receiving a reply they allegedly passed it on to Football Leaks, who deny blackmailing Doyen Sports.  

The emails, which were allegedly written by Beckham, were then leaked and appeared to show him refuse to give $1million to a UNICEF event - allegedly writing 'it's my f****** money'. 

It comes as Welsh singer Katherine Jenkins hit back at Beckham after he allegedly branded her OBE award a 'f****** joke'.

She was given an OBE in the 2014 New Year Honours for her services to music and charity.

Her manager, Professor Jonathan Shalit, told Dan Wootton at The Sun that she deserved her award for her charity work and music career. 

A spokesman for Beckham said: 'This story is based on outdated material taken out of context from hacked and doctored private emails from a third party server and gives a deliberately inaccurate picture.' 

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