Order of the British Empire. Unfortunately he's wearing it on the wrong side...
Please could I help by supplementing the information you have given? It is a common misconception that 'OBE' stands for Order of the British Empire because 'OBE' actually stands for '
Officer of the Order of the British Empire'
The Order of the British Empire is actually divided into 5 categories: MBE is the lowest tier of the Order, GBE is the highest tier;
In more detail,the Order is:
GBE (Knight [if recipient is male, Dame if female) Dame Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire)
KBE (Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire) or DBE (Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire)
CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire)
OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire)
MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire)
Hope you don't think I am being pedantic, but just wanted to clear up a very common misconception about the Order.
As a general rule, sportsman/sportswomen usually get the MBE [Member of the Order of the British Empire] unless they have done something particularly meritorious, when one of the higher grades of the Order is awarded; note: although it is perfectly possible for a particularly meritorious recipient to be awarded an OBE as his/her 'first' medal, as any recipient's [sportsperson or otherwise] career progresses, he or she can 'work their way up the Order'; thus, if a sportsman is first awarded an MBE after national sporting success, but then moves up to (say) winning several Olympic Gold Medals, he/she may well find that they have been upgraded to OBE. Thus, if David Beckham does something else particlarly meritorious, he could find his OBE upgraded to a CBE....or even a Knighthood.
Incidentally, one strange 'economical' quirk is that if you are subsequently awarded a 'higher tier' medal from the one that you presently hold, you have to 'hand back' the lower tier medal! Thus, if David Beckham is appointed a CBE, he has to 'hand back' his OBE so that it can be 'recycled' to a new recipient!!
You are 'spot-on' about David Beckham wearing it on the wrong side, though! Don't know why someome didn't quickly point it out to him before the TV cameras picked it up!
Thanks
Alex