Steve Canning, 45, attended Brighton’s league cup match against Manchester United in September 1992.
That day on September 23, Beckham replaced Andrei Kanchelskis in front of almost 17,000 fans at the Goldstone ground in Hove.
The then-17-year-old, who went on to become a Balon d’Or runner up, was greeted by chants from Albion fans of “who the f****** hell are you?” when he took to the pitch.
In January 2022, The Argus reported that a ticket for the match racked up almost 60 bids with the winning bid coming in at £11,066 on auction website Goldin.
Mr Canning, who grew up in Haywards Heath, was in the stands with his father and grandfather, aged 12 at the time.
David Beckham made his senior debut at the Goldstone ground in Hove
He read the story with disappointment as he thought he did not have his ticket.
“It was one of those rare finds. I never thought I had the ticket,” he said.
However, the disappointment turned to elation when he recently found his ticket among a collection of old programmes.
Mr Canning's ticket from the matchMr Canning's ticket from the match (Image: Steve Canning)
He said: “I was looking through some old programmes and came across the same ticket.
“I got all excited.
“I thought it might be worth something.”
Read more:
He has contacted the original auction site for information.
Mr Canning has since moved to Sheffield, but remains a fan of the Seagulls.
“I still do try and get to a few matches,” he said.
“My dad is still a season ticket holder so he goes and represents the family.
“I have got two young kids and they are both Brighton fans.”
The match finished 1-1, with Danny Wallace taking the lead for United before Matt Edwards headed in an equaliser at the far post for the Seagulls.
Albion would go on to lose the second leg 1-0 after a Mark Hughes goal.