David Beckham was captured sharing a kiss with his seven-year-old daughter, Harper, on Thursday evening, ignoring criticisms he’s faced in the past for doing the same.
The father and daughter duo were watching the England women’s football team play Norway in the quarter-finals of the World Cup and the camera was on them for much of the match.
Harper wore an England T-shirt with a red bandana while Beckham opted for a navy blue blazer and a black collared shirt.
Beckham has been criticised for kissing his youngest child in the past.
In 2017, the former professional football player posted a photograph on Instagram of him kissing his then five-year-old daughter on a beach, but some of his followers responded by calling it “inappropriate”.
In a discussion on Facebook Live filmed shortly after, Beckham insisted he is “very affectionate” with his kids because that is how he was brought up.
Victoria Beckham has shared similar photographs on her Instagram account that show her kissing daughter Harper on the lips.
In June, Piers Morgan described the Beckhams as “creepy” for kissing their daughter on the lips following a video Victoria posted on Instagram Stories showing her husband giving Harper a kiss on the lips during a family boat trip in Miami.
Speaking on Good Morning Britain at the time, presenter Piers Morgan addressed the clip and called the former England captain “creepy” and “weird” for showing such affection to his young child.
Co-host Susanna Reid defended Beckham’s decision to kiss his daughter on the lips, but later admitted she thought it was inappropriate for the moment to be shared online.
But child psychologist Dr Fiona Martin disagrees with the notion that kissing a child on the lips is inappropriate or unusual.
“It’s beautiful,” she said. “Anything that promotes emotional connectivity is good. It’s certainly not inappropriate to kiss your child.”
