Angeles Galaxy and remains a close friend. In July 2007, Beckham made the long-anticipated mid-season switch to Los Angeles with Byrne having played a key role in arranging the transfer six months earlier. Some aspects of Byrne's subsequent involvement with the LA Galaxy have been controversial. Through his long-standing relationship with AEG's Tim Leiweke, Byrne became a consultant on the club payroll, which created an obvious conflict of interest, with a player's personal manager also paid for consulting services to that player's club management. Additionally, Byrne's appointment was not revealed to the public or to the club's players. All of this allowed Beckham, Byrne and 19 Entertainment to run the club from behind the scenes. Byrne carried out moves such as requesting the captain's armband to be given to Beckham immediately on joining the team, which eventually created tension with the club's then captain, Landon Donovan. Byrne hired club personnel, ignoring Galaxy's general manager Alexei Lalas, such as bringing Ruud Gullit as head coach in November 2007. In 2008, 1966 Entertainment launched the Team England footballers' charity which donates players' match fees to their charity partners. The idea arose from Byrne's discussions with the players' committee. Co-founding Aura Entertainment After ending his role as Beckham's personal manager, Byrne confirmed in January 2009 that he was in talks with the Leyton Orient chairman Barry Hearn regarding a possible takeover by the Byrne-headed consortium. However, this did not materialise. In 2009, Byrne became a founding partner of Aura Entertainment along with Steve Clarke, David Piper and James Oxley. Aura Entertainment, along with David Gardiner and SEQ, created Arena 3000 (later renamed A:3K), of which Byrne is also a director. A:3K's main activity is sports entertainment. Specifically, the company puts on entertainment events in indoor arenas during the summer off-season featuring well-known footballers. The shows combine elements of football with performing arts and technology. Byrne put together A:3K Football, a skills challenge event with a futuristic gladiator setting at The O2 arena in London on 17 July 2010 with David Villa, Cesc Fabregas, Cristiano Ronaldo, Didier Drogba, Steven Gerrard and Wayne Rooney. However, the event was postponed after Rooney and Gerrard, two of the most interesting names for the English crowd, withdrew, fearing a backlash for appearing at a highly paid event so soon after England's poor showing in the 2010 World Cup. Reviving the New York Cosmos In 2010, Byrne helped to