For those of you keeping count, this happens to be Beckhams tenth piece of body art, not including his 'golden balls' which may be considered an artwork in themselves. They guy must have a love of needles or something, but in his defence at least this new tattoo is not as hideous as his "angel" on the back of his neck, which makes him look like a right proper knob.

This time, he has opted for a sleeve style tattoo, apparently influenced by the full body tatts that Wentworth Miller sports on Prison Break. And in another twist he has a line from a Roman poem included that translates roughly as "Let them hate so long as they fear", a line regularly used by the Caligula, or 'Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus Germanicus'... Emperor Caligula is shorter, and works for me.

So lets put the two head to head, and cover some things that Beckham probably should have known before he got that poetic line linking him forever with Crazy Caligula.

Caligula was bi-sexual. This is probably not a big issue back then, nor is it really a big issue for someone as good looking as Beckham, I mean people, have you heard the guy talk? We'll call that one a draw.

He slept with his senators' wives, and his own wife sister. Um, I'm sorry, I shall amend the record. Among many sexual conquests he slept with all three of his sisters. Oh Caligula, were there no good-looking Roman women around that weren't blood related? Oh, there were, but you auctioned them off to the highest bidder during orgies regardless of their marital status. Always the entrepreneur.

Maybe Caligula originally hailed from Tasmania, or country USA. We will never know. I don't think that the Beckhams are related by blood are they... although it may explain Romeo's six fingered hand. And David did have that 'Rebecca Loos' saga.
ADVANTAGE CALIGULA

He thought he was a football sex god. So does Beckham.
DEUCE

Caligula was incredibly self-indulgent, arrogant, egotistical, and is generally portrayed as insane. And Posh and Becks named one of their children Brooklyn after the place he was conceived. Other suggestions included "Behind the garden shed" and "Front seat of an X-trail".
ADVANTAGE BECKHAM

Caligula survived three attempted murders, Beckham survived hundreds of angry English football fans burning effigies of himself after his sending off in the 1998 world cup.
DEUCE

Caligula was eventually murdered by his own bodyguards, after mocking the captain of his bodyguards 'wounded penis' in front of everyone. Beckham is moving to the USA to play football.

I'm calling this match-up a tie. Beckham and Caligula are kindred spirits. Caligula was a paedophile, and Beckham looks like a boy. Obviously David knows his Roman History.