David Beckham "didn't realize how "strong" Victoria Beckham was until they got married

The 48-year-old former soccer star tied the knot with the singer-turned-fashion designer in 1999 after two years of dating and

even though he "didn't know" who she really was until their relationship progressed.

Speaking on SiriusXM's 'This Life of Mine with James Corden', he reflected: "I really just fancied her. I did. I just fancied her."

"I didn't know what she was like as a person. I just actually fancied her like most people did at that time, and I didn't know who I was marrying [or] who I was going to be with for the rest of my life. I didn't realize what a strong woman she was, and that is what really attracted me to her more than anything."

While David thinks Victoria - the mother of his children Brooklyn, 25, Romeo, 21, Cruz, 19, and 12-year-old Harper - is "beautiful" and "sexy",

.

He said: "I like a strong woman, and I like the fact that she works hard. I like the fact that she's a great mother."

"I like the fact that she looks after me sometimes, most of the time, and you know, we've created this life with four amazing children, which are the most important things in our life, so that's why I chose Victoria.. .the way that she kind of runs the family."

And the retired soccer star will always love

because the music video was what first attracted him to Victoria, now 49.

He said: "It's my favorite because it was the song that was on the TV when I was sat in my room with Gary Neville and it came on the telly and that was when I turned around to Gary and said, 'I'm gonna 'marry that one in the short black dress.' "