Rooney admits he may never manage again as punditry gives him 'purpose'

Wayne Rooney has admitted there is a real chance his management career is over, revealing that a shift into full-time punditry is about finding purpose rather than chasing a pay cheque.

The former England captain, 40, has been absent from the dugout since departing Plymouth Argyle in December 2024, having managed just four wins in 23 Championship games and leaving the club rooted to the foot of the table. Since then he has become a fixture on Match of the Day, reportedly earning £800,000 per year under a deal signed at the start of the 2025-26 Premier League season.

“I’m not doing it for money, I’m doing it for a purpose rather than just being at the house all day,” Rooney said on his new Disney+ documentary, The Real Rooneys. “There’s a possibility I’ll never manage again, so moving forward… I need a role on The Masked Singer, but I’d get hammered.”

Rooney drew a candid parallel between the end of a playing career and the unpredictability of management. “As a player you know when your career is going to end and you can prepare for that,” he said. “In management you don’t know whether you’ll be there a year, two years, 10 years or three months. You’re not prepared when you lose the job. I’m enjoying Match of the Day and it’s time to learn and get better at what I’m doing.”

Alongside his Match of the Day duties, Rooney co-hosts a Manchester United podcast with content creator Mark Goldbridge for Gary Neville’s network, The Overlap.

He also has a new BBC project in the pipeline. Can You Beat Wayne Rooney? will see the former striker face a different celebrity opponent each week in a football trivia format, hosted by comedian Alex Brooker. The BBC described the show as an opportunity for fans to hear stories from Rooney’s career — covering dressing rooms, title races and iconic moments — while watching “his competitive side emerge as he tries to protect his reputation against a fresh challenge.”