The ex-wife of a former English Premier League star-turned-TV-celebrity has revealed sordid details of life as a footballer's spouse in a new tell-all book.
Lizzie Cundy claims she was constantly checking her husband's social media accounts and phone for proof of extramarital affairs, was spat on and abused by footballfans, and knew of a number of teammates who were sleeping with each other's partners.
Lizzie, who was married to former Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur defender Jason Cundy between 1994 and 2012 before finding fame as a TV presenter, has just released her memoir Tales From The Red Carpet - lifting the lid on the dark side of football, while also dishing the dirt on A-list celebrities like Prince Harry and Kim Kardashian.
In an interview with The Sun, Cundy described footballers as "the new rock'n'roll stars".
"They're very young and make lots of money, so it looks glamorous on the outside. But as the ex-wife of a footballer, I know that means having to have eyes in back of my head.
"It may be different now, but in my WAG days, football clubs were very incestuous. They're made up of players from across the world and the country, who only regularly hang out with people from within that club - and that leads to a lot of club affairs," she said.
"I know of footballers having affairs with other players' wives – luckily, I managed to avoid all of that. But it's unnerving how much of it goes on."
Cundy also reveals the challenges of having to deal with temperamental footballers' every need.
"When you become a footballer's wife or girlfriend, essentially you sign up to being their full-time carer.
"It means, unless you're already well established yourself - like Perrie Edwards [British pop singer and girlfriend of Liverpool midfielder Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain] is and Victoria [Beckham] and Cheryl [Cole)] were - then it's difficult to have a career as you're there to look after him, the kids and then you are last on the pecking order," she told The Sun.
Jason Cundy played as a defender for Chelsea and Tottenham in the 1990s. Photo / Getty
"My husband was injured quite a lot, and that meant I was living with a human pressure cooker. When your husband's life is footie and it isn't going well, it causes a lot of arguments because they are unhappy and frustrated. If a teammate has been picked in their position over them, all hell breaks loose… with the players and their wives."
Cundy says she has also been abused by disgruntled fans over the years.
Cheryl Cole and Victoria Beckham were stars in their own right before they married footballers. Photo / Getty
"When Jason moved from Chelsea to Tottenham, I got spat at by a fan and had to have a police escort through the stadium. They were chanting, calling me scum – my little boy was with me but luckily he couldn't understand the bad language.
"It was like going through a war zone, and I got called every name under the sun in front of my young child.
"On the outside, people see nice houses, swimming pools, designer gear, but unless you are happy at home, it isn't worth it."
