Case “Wagatha Christie”: victory of the wife of Wayne Rooney against that of Jamie Vardy

The “Wagatha Christie” trial is over. An investigation based on false stories on Instagram, settling of accounts between celebrities, a lawsuit amounting to millions… The case arouses such interest that it has its own nickname: “Wagatha Christie”, a reference to WAG (Wives and girlfriends), an acronym used to refer to the companions of famous athletes, and to the famous novelist.

Rebekah Vardy, wife of Leicester City striker Jamie Vardy, is suing Coleen Rooney, wife of former England soccer star Wayne Rooney, after the latter accused her of leaking information about her in the tabloids.

But Judge Karen Steyn agreed with Ms Rooney on Friday, saying it was ‘likely’, as she claimed, that the leaks came from Ms Vardy’s public relations agent, Caroline Watt, who was acting with the backed by his boss. “Ms Vardy was aware of this behavior and tolerated it, actively engaging in it“, said the judge.

London’s High Court, which released its verdict after a ten-day trial in May, had refused to give either side advance notice for fear the judgment would leak.

“Investigation” on Instagram

It all started in October 2019 when Coleen Rooney accused Rebekah Vardy of having sent the tabloid The Sun “false stories” about her.

In a publication on Instagram and Twitter widely relayed and derided by Internet users, Ms. Rooney explained that she had realized that what she published on her private account was regularly published in the newspaper, which at the time had a section devoted to the wives of footballers.

Suspecting Ms. Vardy, she explained that she had carried out the investigation by “blocking everyone from my stories except ONE account”. She then posted fake stories about her life – including a trip to Mexico for alleged gender-selective treatment for her child – to see if they ended up in the tabloid, which they did. “I took screenshots which clearly show that only one person had seen” the stories, she said. “This is… Rebekah Vardy’s account.“

Ms. Vardy had denied and decided to sue Ms. Rooney for defamation. According to British law, it was up to Mrs Rooney to prove the truth of the accusations made. “I gave no information to the newspapers“, had assured Ms. Vardy before the court.

#TeamRebekah ou #TeamColeen

In her verdict, the judge admitted that the information revealed “were not deeply confidential and could be described as trivial“. “But it doesn’t have to be confidential or material to be defamation,” she said. “It was information from private publications that Mrs. Rooney did not want made public..”

Rebekah Vardy said she was “extremely sad and disappointed” by this decision. “I brought this action to restore my reputation and I am devastated by the judge’s conclusion. She indicated that she did not intend to appeal, saying that “the case is over” and said implored those who insult her and her family to “stop now“.

For her part, Coleen Rooney declared herself “happy” with the verdict. “This is not a deal I sought or desired. I never thought she (Ms Vardy) would have had to go to court at such a cost“, she reacted in a press release. The case has so fascinated Internet users that they opposed during the trial with #TeamRebekah or #TeamColeen on social networks.

If Coleen Rooney, 36, and Rebekah Vardy, 40, became public figures because of their relationship with footballers, they have since been “people” in their own right. Followed by hundreds of thousands of subscribers on Instagram, they regularly share photos of their respective children.