Romeo Beckham Steps Out at Met Gala for Debut While Parents Mark 12-Year Gap

Romeo Beckham walked the Met Gala red carpet for the first time on Monday evening, stepping into fashion's biggest night in a striking custom look from Burberry.

The 23-year-old model and soccer player, who appeared alongside Burberry creative director Daniel Lee and model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, donned a black grain de poudre wool double-breasted tuxedo with plongé leather peaked lapels, paired with a black plongé leather shirt and tie. The design drew inspiration from both a custom double-breasted suit from his personal wardrobe and the self-portraits of photographer Robert Mapplethorpe, whose work explored leather as a symbol of both uniform and youthful expression. He completed the ensemble with De Beers London jewelry.

His red-carpet moment comes as his parents, David and Victoria Beckham, remain absent from the gala. The couple last attended in 2014, marking a 12-year gap since their final appearance at the Metropolitan Museum of Art event.

Romeo's older brother Brooklyn Beckham has maintained a separate trajectory, attending the Met Gala multiple times over the years with his wife Nicola Peltz, despite his estrangement from the broader family.

Huntington-Whiteley, a longtime Burberry ambassador, also wore the brand to the evening, selecting a burnt umber gown featuring a crystal and bead-embellished heart-shaped bodice and draped silk tulle skirt. Her look referenced John Singer Sargent's 1883-84 painting "Madame X," which depicts socialite Virginie Amélie Avegno Gautreau. The original artwork, featuring a jeweled strap slipping from one shoulder, caused scandal upon its debut and remains an influential depiction of the dressed body in art and fashion.

The 2026 Met Gala, held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, celebrates the institution's Costume Art exhibition exploring the "centrality of the dressed body" through interpretations of the human form. This year's dress code centers on "Fashion is Art," with co-chairs Beyoncé, Nicole Kidman, Venus Williams, and former Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour leading the evening.