Wayne Rooney reveals Jewish roots as family visits Auschwitz in new Disney+ series

Wayne Rooney has revealed he is Jewish despite being raised Catholic, having discovered he is descended from Polish-Jewish immigrants through his maternal grandmother. Rooney said in his new Disney+ series The Real Rooneys, "I recently found out my mum's mum, me nan, her family was Polish Jews," adding, "I'm Catholic, but I've always asked questions like, 'Why aren't we Jewish?'"

A producer noted the ancestry is maternal, technically making him Jewish, and Rooney jokingly suggested a spin-off called "Roo the Jew."

The revelation comes in the fourth episode of the 10-part series, which follows Rooney, his wife Coleen, and their children. The family's trip to Poland was prompted by their son Kit's school project on World War Two, leading them to visit Krakow before traveling to Auschwitz with sons Kit, 10, and Cass, eight.

The trip marked Rooney's second visit to the extermination camp, following a 2012 trip with England teammates during the European Championship, when he said, "I'm a parent, and it's tough to see what happened there... you have to see it firsthand." Revisiting Auschwitz with his family, Rooney reflected, "You just wouldn't think human beings could do that to other human beings," adding that people should remember "what people done for us to be able to enjoy the privileges we have now."

Rooney says his mother, Jeanette, told him his great-grandmother had fled Poland for Liverpool, with her surname believed to be Greenburg.