Retail roundup: David Beckham, PayPal, Super Bowl spending

-- Soccer star David Beckham will star in a 30-second Super Bowl spot to help launch his underwear line with cheap-chic retailer H&M.

H&M said the commerical -- which it described as “stimulating” -- would kick off the “long-term alliance” between Beckham and the retailer.

The skivvies line will be available Feb. 2 and consist of nine pieces, including boxers, pajamas, long johns and vests. And presumably shoppers can look forward to more wares from this underwear alliance in the future.

-- Online payment system PayPal is nudging into the bricks-and-mortar realm by rolling out a new payment system at more than 2,000 Home Depot stores by March, Bloomberg reports.

The system, which enables shoppers to make purchases by swiping a PayPal card or entering a cellphone number and passcode, is already available at 51 stores nationwide, including 44 in the Bay Area.

Owned by online auction giant EBay, PayPal is seeking to expand its domain and offer an alternative to credit cards at physical retail locations.

-- Football is boosting the economy: People watching the Super Bowl on Feb. 5 will spend a record $11.1 billion on food, sports gear and other game-day accessories, a report predicts.

An estimated 173 million people are expected to watch the game, up from 171 million last year, according to a survey by the Retail Advertising and Marketing Assn. The average spectator will drop $63.87 on related merchandise, up from $59.33 in 2011.

“It seems millions of Americans are already planning to have a knock-out good time for Super Bowl XLVI,” Mike Gatti, the association’s executive director, said in a statement.

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