ROBBIE KEANE AND his LA Galaxy teammates met Barack Obama at the White House earlier today.
Speaking in relation to the striker at the reception, Obama said: “Robbie [is] the all-time leading scorer of the Irish national team – a cousin of mine.
“Robbie arrived halfway through last season. He scored his first goal in the first 21 minutes of his first game.
“His teammates were so happy to have him that they filled his locker room with what they call the pleasures of Ireland: Baileys and Irish Spring. Hopefully Robbie’s broadened their horizons since then.”
Obama also ribbed David Beckham over his age and his outside interests, saying it’s a “rare man who can be that tough on the field and also have his own line of underwear.”
Obama welcomed Beckham and the Los Angeles Galaxy to the White House Tuesday to celebrate their third Major League Soccer Cup. The president joked that the star-studded Galaxy, led by Beckham, midfielder Landon Donovan and Keane, are the “Miami Heat of soccer.”
Obama told the 37-year-old Beckham that half of his teammates “could be his kids. We’re getting old, David.” The president said the model and athlete was “holding up better than me.”
Beckham generated attention in February when H&M aired ads for his new undergarment collection during the Super Bowl.
Obama also congratulated the club on their community service activities.
Following the meeting, Galaxy player Bryan Jordan tweeted:
“That was a pretty awesome once in a life time experience. Even tho we’ll be trying our best to come back & do it all over again next year.
“Meeting @BarackObama was an honor & I learned he’s a pretty funny guy. He was cracking jokes the whole time. #coolpresident”.
YouTube credit: whitehouse
(picture via @LAGalaxy)
Additional reporting by Paul Fennessy.
