David Beckham



English national football team midfielder David Beckham has become one of the best known U.K. football players. Thirty three year old Beckham has numerous awards and accolades for his football ability. Some of these awards include winning the British Sportsman of the Year Award in 2001 from the British Sports Writers' Association, UEFA Awards most valuable player in 1999 and PFA Young Player of the Year Award in 1997 to name a few. Going back to 1991, David signed on as a trainee for the Manchester United and today plays for Major League Soccer's Los Angeles Galaxy team. These days Beckham is known the world over not only for his contribution to U.K. football but for much more, including his acting roles.

Ryan Giggs

Born in Cardiff in 1973, Ryan Giggs has played for the Manchester United for the past eighteen years. Since beginning his career with Manchester United in 1992, Giggs has won nine Premier League winner's medals. Ryan is also a midfielder and is widely accepted as one of the best in U.K. football history. However, in 2007 he retired completely from international football.

Kevin Phillips

Aston Villa forward Kevin Phillips started off in football as a right back. His 30 FA Premier League goals during the 1999-2000 seasons for Sunderland won him the European Golden Boot. Although he has suffered injuries and has bounced around to many teams, he is still regarded as a fan favorite amongst U.K. Football fans.

History of Premier League Football

Premier League Football also known as the Barclays Premier League began in mid 2002 to revive and recover the failing U.K. Football image. Due to many soccer stadium riots and violence that brought shame to the entire nation, new rules, regulations and systems where put in place for U.K Football. English football had been banned for several years for its violence. Racial slurs and stadiums falling apart were also issues that were addressed and fixed with the Premier League formation. Since then, the Premier League has created a brand that sports fans around the world regularly watch.

Below is the list of the twenty Premier League teams.

Arsenal/Aston Villa/Blackburn Rovers/Bolton Wanderers/Chelsea/Everton/Fulham/Hull City/Liverpool/Manchester City/Manchester United/Middlesbrough/Newcastle United/Portsmouth/Stoke City/Sunderland/Tottenham Hotspur/West Bromwich/West Ham/Wigan Athletic

The Football League Championship (Also known as the Coca-Cola Football League Championship because Coca-Cola sponsors of the Championship and the two leagues.) is a division of the English football league system after the Premier League. It's also one of the biggest football leagues in Europe today. Team rankings are based upon goals scored, goal difference, and points gained. Teams play against other teams for a total of two times. One home game and then another away game is then played. Recently, BBC Radio 5 Live and The Football League Championship have teamed up to provide weekly podcast featuring U.K. Football content.

The twenty four Football League Championship teams

Barnsley/Birmingham City/Blackpool/Bristol City/Burnley/Cardiff City/Charlton Athletic/Coventry City/Crystal Palace/Derby County/Doncaster Rovers/Ipswich/Norwich City/Nottingham Forest/Plymouth Argyle/Preston North End/Queens Park Rangers/Reading/Sheffield United/Sheffield Wednesday/Southampton/Swansea City/Watford/Wolverhampton Wanderers