Beckham shows his balls in 100ft Armani poster

There have been rumours that "Goldenballs" may have benefited from a touch of airbrushing as he looks a little larger than usual in the ad.

A spokesperson for Beckham was reported in the Daily Mail to have denied that the image had been digitally altered or that the underwear had been padded. He said: "There wasn't any enhancement in that region."

The global ad campaign features five images of Beckham photographed by Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott on Malibu beach for Emporio Armani's Autumn/Winter collection.

It will appear in sport, fashion and lifestyle magazines and on billboards in major cities such as New York, Los Angeles, London, Milan, Rome, Paris and Tokyo.

The ad will have its print debut in Vanity Fair, as happened with the first Beckham campaign.

The original campaign featured a black and white image of Beckham lying down in his underwear and a white shirt, which was shot on location in Los Angeles.

Since Beckham's move to Los Angeles, Giorgio Armani is now considered a friend of the family.

Armani has a close relationship with the world of sport, having dressed many of the world's top football players including Ronaldo, Luis Figo, Thierry Henry and Christian Vieri.