Roy Keane mocks England WAGs for wearing partners' names at the World Cup

Roy Keane has drawn criticism after dismissing the tradition of England players’ wives and girlfriends wearing personalised shirts at the World Cup, arguing the gesture rings hollow given the rate of relationship breakdowns among footballers.

The former Manchester United captain, speaking on The Overlap podcast, singled out the practice of partners displaying their husbands’ surnames on the back of replica shirts. “Children is fine, but all the wives and partners were in their jerseys with their name on the back, wow,” Keane said. “The wives, a year later, they’re separated, most of them. Wow. And they’re all getting pictures, and they’re like, ‘Look,’ and they’re pointing at Jimmy or Johnny on the back.”

Keane also questioned why the custom appears exclusively at major tournaments rather than at club grounds week to week. “They don’t do it at Old Trafford or Anfield every week, do they? So what’s with this World Cup?”

Ian Wright, also appearing on the podcast, pushed back on Keane’s characterisation. “Her husband’s playing, and she’s proud of him, and she wants to wear his shirt,” Wright said, framing the gesture as straightforward spousal support rather than performative behaviour.

The exchange highlights a recurring tension in how the public and media scrutinise the visibility of players’ partners at international tournaments, a debate that has followed England squads in particular since the 2006 World Cup brought the term “WAGs” into mainstream usage. Keane, at 54, has built a post-playing career on blunt assessments that frequently court controversy, and his comments here are unlikely to be his last word on the culture surrounding elite football.