Wayne Rooney’s Son ‘Banned’ From Wearing Boot Brand by Man Utd

Wayne Rooney has revealed why his oldest son, Kai, has effectively been banned from wearing a boot brand while representing Manchester United’s academy.

Like his father Wayne was, 16-year-old Kai is a talented footballer and has played for United’s youth setup since he was 11, first signing for the club in December of 2020.

Of course, Wayne is United’s all-time leading goalscorer with 253 strikes in 559 appearances and helped the Red Devils win five Premier League titles and one Champions League during his 13-year spell at Old Trafford.

And despite his father being a club legend, it appears Kai is not getting preferential treatment by the club’s academy.

The 16-year-old plays as a left-footed right-forward and will be hoping to bag a place in United’s first-team set up in years to come.

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Kai Rooney in action for Man Utd (Credit:Getty)

As expected, given who his father is, Kai’s journey through the academy has been watched closely by fans and the media, which in turn has given him a head start in terms of securing a commercial deal, with the teenager landing a boot deal with Puma when he was still 12 in 2022.

But the youngster is banned from wearing the brand’s boots when playing for United’s Under-16s in line with club policy.

Speaking on ‘The Smith Brothers: Not A Podcast’, alongside Liverpudlian boxers Liam, Paul, Callum and Stephen Smith, Wayne explained: “He’s [Kai] obviously with Puma, but when he’s with the Under-16s, he can’t wear his Puma boots, which I really like from Man United.

“The academy all have to wear the same. Why they do it is they have players from areas who can’t afford certain boots, and I think it’s really good to do that.

“When he plays for the Under-18s, he can wear his Puma boots, and he’s doing really good, to be fair.”

Wayne has three other sons – Klay, Kit and Cass - with his wife, Coleen.

Klay, like his older brother Kai, also plays for United’s academy, while Cass is on Everton’s books like his father was as a boy.

However, Kit bucked the family trend and has “retired” from football.

“The third one, he's retired,” Wayne said in March.

“He's retired a few times."

Kit has previously shown an interest in darts while also being an avid fishing fan.