But his battle with OCD was common knowledge amongst teammates at his previous club, Manchester United.
Beckham told how players Paul Scholes, Nicky Butt, Ryan Giggs and Gary and Phil Neville would barge in to his hotel room. 'I thought they were just coming in for a chat.
But then they'd go out and I'm thinking, "Something's different here". And then all the magazines would be all wonky.'
He added: 'They'd have been in my wardrobe and all my trousers and my shoes would be all over the place. It was a joke with them.'
Beckham, who has 12 tattoos including the names of his sons Brooklyn, Romeo and Cruz, said: 'Funnily enough, and I know it sounds weird, but I actually enjoy the pain.
'Victoria's not keen on my having many more but they are addictive.'
Other famous OCD sufferers include Paul Gascoigne, Woody Allen, Harrison Ford, Emily Lloyd, Michelle Pfeiffer and Winona Ryder. In an earlier era, Charles Dickens and Marcel Proust are also said to have been victims of the condition.
A spokesman for the charity OCDUK hoped Beckham's revelations would encourage other men to seek help with the condition.
'OCD is something which affects both sexes equally but it is usually the women who are brave enough to come forward for help,' he said.
'To people like Beckham who are considered perfectionists in what they do, that sort of mindset can be a benefit to their careers to a degree, but for the vast majority it is a seriously debilitating condition.'
