Manchester United have accepted a stg£25million bid from Real Madrid for David Beckham.
The England captain will be unveiled at the Bernabeu on July 2nd after agreeing terms with the nine-time European champions.
The Manchester United midfielder is said to have agreed a four year contract with Madrid that will be worth up to stg£90,000 a week.
It is not yet clear whether a player exchange has been agreed between the two clubs, although initial reports suggest it will not be the case.
Beckham today confirmed his departure and paid tribute to his manager and mentor Alex Ferguson, as well as United captain Roy Keane and the rest of the team.
He said: "I would like to publicly thank Sir Alex Ferguson for making me the player I am today.
"I will always hold precious memories of my time at Manchester United and Old Trafford as well as the players, who I regard as part of my family, and the brilliant fans who have given me so much support over the years and continue to do so.
"I recognise that this is an amazing opportunity for me at this stage in my career and a unique and exciting experience for my family.
"I know that I will always regret it later in life if I had turned down the chance to play at another great club like Real Madrid, which also has world-class players.
"I would like to thank other clubs who were interested in signing me including Barcelona and I wish them every success in the future, but I really want to play in the Champions League.
"I wish Manchester United the best of luck and led by such an inspirational captain as Roy Keane, I am sure they will continue to go from strength to strength."
A spokesman for SFX, Beckham's advisors, said: "Manchester United have been professional, fair and open in all of their dealings with David - he will always have the greatest memories of his time at Old Trafford."
Last week United announced that they had agreed a conditional bid from Barcelona for Beckham but his agents said that he did not want to join the club.
They stressed he was never interested in moving to Barcelona - his agents even refused to speak to the Catalans - and it was believed he was holding out for a more glamorous move to either Madrid or one of the two Milan clubs, AC or Inter.
Now 28, he has been at United since signing as a schoolboy and had two years remaining on a contract he signed a year ago.