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

Wayne Rooney has instructed lawyers over claims in Andy Carroll’s upcoming autobiography, warning his former England team-mate he could face a courtroom showdown unless the allegations are withdrawn.

The 40-year-old ex-England captain has sent a legal letter to the publishers of Carroll’s book, Owning It, after being accused of organising drinking sessions in his room while on Three Lions duty around 2010-2011.

Carroll alleges that Rooney, then the standard-bearer of the national side and already a Manchester United icon, invited players to drink with him during England training camps. The allegation has infuriated Rooney, who insists the story is false and wants it removed before the book hits the shelves.

According to a source close to Rooney quoted by The Sun, the former striker is “livid” and treating the matter with absolute seriousness, with his legal team sending what has been described as a strongly worded letter to the publisher. The stance from Rooney’s camp is clear: he accepts his past is not spotless, but views this as a step too far and a point of principle.

The fallout has reportedly left Carroll rattled. The former Newcastle United and Liverpool forward, who turned to his own story to reignite his profile, is said to be “spiralling” as the scale of Rooney’s response sinks in. What began as a hard-hitting chapter to help sell a book now threatens to become an expensive legal fight.

Those around Carroll believe he may have to consider a public apology or a retraction to avoid a full-blown battle with Rooney’s lawyers. For a player whose career has already been marked by injuries, setbacks and comebacks, this is a very different kind of pressure.

The timing could hardly be more sensitive for Rooney. Since retiring in 2018, he has pushed into management, then moved into broadcasting, landing a role on BBC’s Match of the Day and agreeing to front both a podcast and a gameshow. He is also in advanced talks to appear on ITV’s I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here, aiming to at least match wife Coleen’s runner-up finish on the show last year.

On Thursday, his new Disney+ series, The Real Rooneys, is released — the same day Carroll’s book is due out. One man launching a carefully curated new chapter. The other publishing explosive claims about the old one.

Those close to Rooney stress that he has shed weight, cut out drinking and worked hard to leave his off-field controversies behind. He wants this phase of his life to be defined by media work, family projects and a cleaner public image, not by a dispute dredging up stories from a decade ago.

That is why this row bites so hard. At the very moment Rooney is trying to reshape how the public sees him, he finds himself fighting to stop someone else rewriting his past.