BEIJING, March 20: David Beckham arrived in China on Tuesday as an ambassador to help develop young players as the country tries to clean up its football image after a spate of corruption scandals.

The former England captain said he isn’t concerned about the match-fixing scandals in China, with several players and officials sentenced to prison.

“I’m not here to clean up anything. I’m here to educate the children and give them a chance to become professional footballers,” Beckham said during his first appearance as ambassador for the Chinese Super League (CSL) at a Beijing primary school on Wednesday.

CSL’s image has been battered by corruption scandals with a three-year inquiry resulted last month in 33 people receiving lifetime bans and Shanghai Shenhua, the former club of Ivorian striker Didier Drogba, being stripped of its 2003 league title.

The former England international’s new role has been widely seen as an ambitious attempt by the league to improve its image.

But Beckham said his focus would be on developing the sport in China at grassroots level. “What has gone on in the past? I am not a politician so I have nothing to do with it,” he said.

The sporting legend also raised the prospect of one last stop on his global football journey, refusing to rule out playing in China after his contract with Paris Saint-Germain ends.

“Who knows? People keep saying that it will be my last club, it will be my last season,” said the 37-year-old midfielder. “I continue to play and I love playing, so we’ll see.”

Beckham is due to play an exhibition game in China in November, five months after his contract with PSG expires.If he opts to retire by then, the match could mark the former Manchester United and Real Madrid star’s swansong before he switches focus to his career off the field.

Developing a youth program is considered a priority for the CSL, with a mere 8,000 players of all ages registered at local associations in a football-mad nation of 1.3 billion people.—Agencies