Beckham open to playing on next season

BEIJING (AFP) –

Footballer David Beckham (C) answers questions from a group of pupils during a press conference at a primary school in Beijing on March 20. Beckham refused Wednesday to rule out playing beyond the end of this season, when his current contract with French side Paris Saint-Germain ends.

Football superstar David Beckham refused Wednesday to rule out playing beyond the end of this season, when his current contract with French side Paris Saint-Germain ends.

Speaking at a news conference unveiling him as an ambassador for the Chinese Super League (CSL), the former England captain left open the possibility of his playing in China.

“I am continuing to play now. So if I continue to stay fit, if I continue to progress as a player because I still feel that I can learn from playing the game, who knows?” said Beckham, after being asked at a press conference whether he might play in China.

“People keep saying it will be my last club and my last season but I continue to play and I love playing, so we’ll see.”

Beckham, now 37 and nearing the end of his career on the pitch, joined Paris Saint-Germain in January on a short-term deal until the end of the season after leaving Los Angeles Galaxy in December.

He is scheduled to pay two more visits to China during the season from March to November to promote the Chinese Super League, which has had its image battered by corruption scandals.

A three-year inquiry resulted last month in 33 people receiving lifetime bans and Shanghai Shenhua, the former club of Didier Drogba, being stripped of its 2003 league title.