Soccer Wives and the Beautiful Game

There is a popular saying that claims that behind every successful man stands a strong woman. In the world of soccer, where the adulation of millions of fans and the temptations that come with untold riches can lead even the most resolute man astray, the women behind the stars have to be even stronger than those in less intense environments.

It helps when the woman in question has as high a profile as the man she supposedly stands behind. And when it comes to high profile, one cannot get any more high profile than the wife of the man who is undoubtedly the most famous soccer player of his generation.

Victoria Beckham was already famous in her own right when she snagged the attentions of husband-to-be David, the then fast rising star of the Manchester United team. As one fifth of British pop group the Spice Girls, Posh had a number of hit records before young master Beckham slipped a rock the size of Gibraltar on her finger and popped the question in 1998. Apparently showing much-hidden depths, Vicky saw the potential and within five years, she'd ditched the pop career in all but name and had gone full time as Mrs. Beckham. It has proved to be a brilliant career move for everyone involved.

Posh is more than meets the eye

Victoria has also proved she's more than the strangely pouting woman dangling from the arm of the world's most famous footballer. Recent allegations of infidelity on his part resulted in a good slap from Posh followed by a promise to stand by her man, showing Mrs. Becks to be a fair and forgiving wife who values her family life. There's a woman who knows what she wants and knows how to get it.

Another Euro 2004 star who can be satisfied that his missus is well occupied while he's playing away from home will be Sweden's goalkeeper Magnus Hedman. The Scandinavian goalie is one half of his country's "blonde and beautiful" celebrity partnership, sharing the marital bed with former Playboy playmate, model and pop star Magdalena Graf, who is undoubtedly more famous than the Celtic keeper in their native land. While the blonde Magnus will be facing the firepower of Europe's best strikers, beautiful Magda, one of Sweden's most recognizable and desired stars, will be pursuing her latest venture -- hitting the boutiques.

Mags loves her bags

Mother-of-two Mags, regularly voted one of the world's sexiest footballer's wives, is renowned for her ability to spend with abandon and allegedly once blew over €3000 ($3680) of hubby Magnus' casino winnings on two handbags. Hedman will be hoping to keep Sweden in the tournament for as long as possible, given the amount of win bonuses which will be needed back home.

Even if their careers fail to eclipse those of their husbands and partners, many soccer wives and girlfriends overshadow their men in terms of glamour and beauty, often begging the question: "what on earth does she see in him?"

The supermodel and the goalie

Take supermodel Linda Evangelista for example. A woman who famously said she wouldn't get out of bed for anything less than $10,000 a day, the leggy Canadian spurned a number of Hollywood suitors and plumped for the French international goalkeeper Fabien Barthez, a diminutive man of slight build, below average height and bald as a cue ball who looks more like a James Bond villain than a professional footballer. Prone to bulging eyes and erratic behavior, one wonders what Linda saw in him when she said "yes" at the altar.

The couple had a wild time while Barthez was starring for AS Monaco, enjoying the sophisticated lifestyle of the principality, but began experiencing problems once he moved to less glamorous Manchester to pull on the shirt of United.

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Now no longer together despite the Frenchman being back on home soil in Marseille, Barthez extended his lucky streak post-Linda by allegedly dated another model-slash-actress, the French starlet Ophelie Winter. Ms. Winter, the daughter of a famous Dutch singer, has a string of French TV credits to her name and has appeared in a number of movies. She has also displayed her father's talent for music by turning her career path towards the charts with the release of two solo albums. Despite the romantic rumors, reports on the current status of the alleged fling are sketchy.

However, regardless of whether these two are still in l'amour, Barthez will be in good company at Euro 2004. Fab isn't the only one who can count their lucky stars when it comes to bagging a gorgeous partner while looking like a plumber. Portugal's Luis Figo also enjoys a "Beauty and the Beast" relationship with his Swedish wife Helene.

Luis Figo's Swedish saint

Obviously a woman with a high tolerance to sweat, Helene Figo is the Scandinavian rock on which the perspiration of toiling Portugal playmaker Luis drips onto when he gets home. The famously moist Real Madrid midfielder should give thanks every day for his steadfast wife who endured death threats and abuse after her husband committed the heinous crime of leaving FC Barcelona for the galacticos.

Helene, who models for the Elite agency under her maiden name Svedin, has shown more than enough backbone for both of them, standing firm in the pressure cooker atmosphere of Spanish football while raising two children and continuing her own career.

Casanova Kahn left empty-handed

One high-profile player who will be pining for love during this tournament will be German captain Oliver Kahn. The Bayern Munich goalkeeper currently finds his plate empty after having his cake and eating it over recent months. Oli infamously deserted his wife Simone while she was eight months pregnant for the ample charms of brew house temptress 21-year-old Verena Kerth in March 2003.

The saga that followed Oli's flight from one blonde and the shacking up with another filled the pages of the popular German press for months as he dallied over his decision; one moment appearing to be wracked with remorse and wanting Simone back, the next boozing it up with Verena at discos across Bavaria.

Party chicken moves onto pastures new

It looked like love. Verena, the girl the Frankfurter Allgemeine newspaper called "the pierced party chicken," soon made concessions to her new man, ditching her barely-there mini skirts and strappy tops for more somber attire at his behest. But despite her efforts, Oli called it a day in May this year, stating that there was no room for relationships in his career. Seemingly unaffected, expect Verena to dig out those revealing outfits again as she begins her television career with MTV on the back of her high profile fling with Kahn. Who's the winner there?

Meanwhile, jilted wife Simone has maintained her dignity by filing for divorce, spurning calls for reconciliation and sporting t-shirts with slogans such as "Like a thief in the night, I'm gonna get what's mine." So far resisting Oli's overtures to join him in Portugal this summer, the ex-Frau Kahn is unlikely to line up with the other soccer wives at this year's European Championships.