There’s never a dull day in the lives of football’s most high-profile WAGs. But last week proved to be a double whammy of drama that would eclipse even the most nail-biting Championship Final – and leading the charge was Rebekah Vardy.
Becky, 42, found herself implicated in leaked text messages sent a few years ago from Kyle Walker’s now-wife Annie Kilner to a ‘trusted friend’, in which she raged against his former mistress Lauryn Goodman. Sent soon after it was first revealed Kyle had fathered a child with her, the texts saw Annie wishing Lauryn dead and branding her a ‘slag’.
Sources widely reported that Rebekah had been the recipient of the messages, back in a time when she and Annie ‘were friends and trusted each other with private thoughts’. Becky has yet to address the rumours herself.
Then, Rebekah stirred up more drama by taking her long-time enemy Coleen Rooney back to court in an attempt to dispute the legal costs she was ordered to pay after losing her libel battle in 2022. Unfortunately for Becky, the proceedings – which took place last week with neither of the women present in court – did not go in her favour, as the judge actually ordered her to pay another £100k towards Coleen’s legal fees, before the total settlement is decided next year. But her decision to reignite the battle was seen by many as a signal to Coleen, 38 – and any other WAGs getting in her way – that Rebekah isn’t prepared to go down without a fight. And this time, she’s got Lauryn on her side.
‘After a few months of relative calm, Becky seems to be igniting a new war,’ says an insider close to the WAG, who – even before she decided to sue Coleen five years ago – was known for being involved in public spats.
‘Alarm bells are ringing, especially now she’s grown so close to Lauryn – it’s a dangerous combo. Coleen and Annie are anxiously looking over their shoulders, wondering what those two are plotting and what more will be coming their way. Annie’s texts about Lauryn were leaked just before Becky’s new court case against Coleen, which seems no coincidence in terms of timing. It’s left both Coleen and Annie feeling very on edge.’
Mum-of-five Rebekah has seemingly got nothing to do with Annie’s very public feud with Lauryn, 33. But her name cropped up last week after The Sun shared the heated text exchange that Annie – who shares four children with husband Kyle – reportedly sent to a ‘friend’ in 2020, shortly after it was revealed Lauryn had given birth to Kyle’s son Kairo, now four, while he and Annie were temporarily separated. In addition to allegedly railing, ‘I want her dead,’ Annie, 32, is also said to have called Lauryn a ‘slag’ and added, ‘She is going to be hated by the time I’ve finished.’
A lot has happened in the Kyle-Annie-Lauryn drama since then. While Kyle and Annie got back together, marrying in 2021, Annie was devastated when it was revealed last December that Kyle had fathered a second child with Lauryn in 2023 – daughter, Kinara, now one. Wars of words and court battles have raged ever since, with Lauryn refusing to be silenced. But last week’s leaked messages fuelled even more fire between them – with Lauren revealing she was ‘reviewing all options open’ over Annie’s alleged comments about her. It’s since been reported that Annie’s marriage has reached such a low point that she’s spoken to divorce lawyers.
But, where does Becky fit in? While she and Annie used to be close – especially around the time this text exchange took place – they’ve since fallen out. Becky famously called Annie a ‘doormat’ and also joked that Kyle’s philandering antics were ‘the gift that keeps on giving’ on social media – prompting Annie to cryptically post on her own account, ‘I think it’s important to remember that no matter how good you are to people, it won’t make them good to you.’ Becky subsequently lashed out again, saying Annie was ‘great at playing the victim’. She’s since reportedly realigned her loyalties and has now become firm friends with Lauryn, with sources saying that Becky has been a ‘huge source of encouragement’ to her.
With the dust still settling on Annie’s leaked texts, it was hard to disentangle Rebekah’s name from the mess last week. The inferred message to many was that Rebekah has more fight to give on all fronts – and she proved it yet again when, days later, she reignited the ‘Wagatha Christie’ court battle.
By her own admission, the past few years have taken their toll on mum-of-four Coleen. But as far as her legal woes were concerned, she truly believed the matter had been put to rest. Rebekah lost their High Court battle in 2022, with a judge ruling that Coleen’s claims Becky had leaked stories about her to the press were ‘substantially true’. Becky was duly ordered to pay a whopping 90% of her adversary’s £1.8m legal fees, with an initial payment of £800k. But while Rebekah is now disputing the hundreds of thousands she still owes, the ruling went in Coleen’s favour yet again last week.
But while Coleen’s legal team awaits the rest of the payment, Coleen has still had to fork out 10% of an enormous bill for a legal battle she never wanted – and it’s clear the aggravation has caused issues. According to our source, Rebekah’s persistent action against her has made Coleen feel like she’ll never catch a break, and her enemy’s latest alliance with Lauryn makes her feel even more nervous over what’s to come.
We’re told, ‘Coleen and Annie both think that Becky and Lauryn are quite dangerous together, because they’re obsessed with power, revenge, being talked about, and being in the headlines. Coleen, in particular, is trying to figure out how to get ahead of it all – it’s really messing with her head. She feels like she’s back in that bad place, sitting there waiting for the attacks to come and always looking over her shoulder, wondering what Becky is plotting. It’s really getting to her, but she’s determined not to let Becky get away with it.’
Everyone knows that hell hath no fury like a WAG scorned. But throw two into the mix, and there’s no telling what they will do.