Wayne Rooney Takes Legal Action Over Andy Carroll's Autobiography Claims

Wayne Rooney has instructed lawyers over claims in Andy Carroll’s forthcoming autobiography that the former England captain organised drinking sessions on international duty.

The 40-year-old has sent a legal letter to the publishers of Carroll’s book, Owning It, demanding the removal of a passage alleging he invited team-mates to drink in his room during England camps around 2010-2011.

Those close to Rooney say he is furious and prepared to go the distance if the allegation remains in print. One source said he views the claim as “completely untrue” and a line he is not willing to let anyone cross, even a former team-mate.

Rooney, who has spoken openly in the past about his own off-field issues, is understood to see this as a matter of reputation and timing. He has shed weight, cut out alcohol and has been intent on presenting a very different version of himself in recent years.

Carroll, the former Newcastle and Liverpool striker, now finds himself under intense pressure. The threat is clear: retract the story or face an expensive and very public legal battle. Those around him believe he badly misjudged Rooney’s reaction and is now wrestling with the fallout as publication day looms.

Both men have plenty at stake beyond the courtroom.

Rooney is rebuilding his profile away from the dugout after mixed spells in management. He has become a regular on BBC’s Match of the Day, has agreed to front a podcast and a gameshow, and is in advanced talks to appear on ITV’s I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here, where he is privately determined to at least match wife Coleen’s runner-up finish from last year.

Thursday has become a pivotal date. Disney+ will release The Real Rooneys, a new series charting Wayne and Coleen’s life, on the same day Carroll’s book hits the shelves.

For Rooney, that day was supposed to underline a fresh chapter: fitter, sober, and focused on broadcasting and entertainment. Instead, it now carries the shadow of an allegation he insists belongs firmly in his past – if it ever belonged to him at all.