Striker’s wife: Don’t call us WAGS ... we’re not defined by our husbands!
THE WAGs of the 2006 World Cup ensured the spotlight was just as much on them as it was their famous partners.
But 12 years on, the wives and girlfriends of the England squad are doing things differently.
Rebekah Vardy has called for the wives and girlfriends not to be known collectively as WAGs, saying: ‘WAG is a dated term because we’re not defined by what our husbands do. We’re individuals.’
She also revealed this year’s partners have been swapping tips over messaging service Whatsapp on what to do with their children during their spare time.
The 36-year-old wife of striker Jamie Vardy told Grazia magazine: ‘We talk about normal things, not about Louboutins and Chanel bags.’
The England WAGs – including Victoria Beckham, Coleen Rooney and Cheryl Cole – were regularly photographed by paparazzi during the 2006 World Cup in Germany, and notoriously spent a lot of time shopping. Speaking earlier this month, Mrs Vardy told Fabulous Magazine: ‘The wives and girlfriends have a much lower profile now and that is how it should be. Our job is to be supportive.
‘I would be mortified if I was pictured leaving a bar absolutely p***** knowing that my husband was going to play one of the biggest games of his life the next day.’
Mrs Vardy has taken the couple’s two young children, three-year-old Sofia and Finley, 17 months, as well as her two children from previous relationships, Megan, 13, and Taylor, eight, to Russia. The I’m a Celebrity star, who has spent an estimated £150,000 on chartering a private jet, hiring two security guards and taking her full-time nanny, Vicky, with the family to Russia, has been criticised for taking her older children out of school during term time.
But she said: ‘It’s really important for Jamie. He knows we’re there to support him.’ Mrs Vardy also revealed that, unlike the 2006 World Cup, a ‘sex ban’ has not been enforced on the players.
She added: ‘I think we’ll struggle to do it anyway with four kids in tow. It’s a logistical nightmare.’