Why David Beckham is suing Mark Wahlberg for $16m
David Beckham has launched legal action against Mark Wahlberg, after a joint business venture into the world of fitness failed.
The English soccer legend is suing the Hollywood actor for a whopping £8.5 million (A$16.4 million), claiming he was "duped" by Wahlberg when he started a partnership with the global F45 Training gym.
Beckham agreed to be the firm’s global ambassador when he moved to LA as he became friends with Wahlberg, who owns a huge stake of the gym network.
The 48-year-old sporting hero is also suing the actor’s firm, Mark Wahlberg Investment Group (MWIG), and gym group F45’s founders Adam Gilchrist and Rob Deutsch for "fraudulent conduct".
Beckham is claiming he lost more than $16 million when stocks he was promised were withheld until after share prices plummeted.
In August 2023, F45 Training Holdings announced they had delisted from the New York Stock Exchange after its share price fell by 75 per cent.
Wahlberg and the other defendants said the allegations are baseless and are asking the judge to dismiss the lawsuit.
The defendants’ motion to dismiss goes further to say David Beckham Ventures Ltd (DBVL) are blaming everyone but themselves for the loss of money, adding: “The 209-page, 610-paragraph SAC [complaint] tries to make up with length what it lacks in merit."
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