Beckham played in all of England's qualifying matches for the 1998 FIFA World Cup and was part of the 23-man squad for the finals in France, but the team's manager Glenn Hoddle publicly accused him of not concentrating on the tournament, and he did not start in either of England's first two games. He was picked for the third game against Colombia and scored with a bending 30-yard free kick in a 2–0 victory, which was his first goal for England.
