Wayne Rooney arrived at Manchester's 235 Casino alone just after midnight and spent two hours switching between blackjack and roulette as he drank beers, onlookers claimed. Photo/Getty Images
Wayne Rooney arrived at Manchester's 235 Casino alone just after midnight and spent two hours switching between blackjack and roulette as he drank beers, onlookers claimed. Photo/Getty Images
Wayne Rooney lost £500,000 ($938,883) in a late-night gambling spree during which he spent two hours running up his bill on roulette and blackjack.
The 31-year-old football star arrived at Manchester's 235 Casino alone just after midnight and spent two hours switching between the two tables as he drank beers, onlookers claimed.
Rooney was being "reckless" as he gambled in the red and "seemed to be in his own world", witnesses at the casino, where the Manchester United star is said to have a private account, said, according to Daily Mail.
The casino trip reportedly came after United's Europa League home win over FC Rostov on March 16.
The United star, who is the face of his team's social poker betting app, hadn't played in the match because of an injury and instead watched from a box at Old Trafford.
He then went to the casino just after midnight and stayed until about 2am. A witness said that Rooney was losing "thousands a minute and hundreds of thousands per hour".
One witness told The Sun: "Wayne was being extremely reckless, laying down chips which amounted to massive bets.
"He was drinking bottles of beer. But he wasn't drunk. He was more interested in the gambling than drinking.
"He was gambling a lot on red when he was playing roulette - which seemed appropriate - and was putting long-shot bets on solo numbers. He kept losing but that just prompted him to bet more."
Onlookers were "stunned" as they watched gambling-mad Rooney, who reportedly gets VIP treatment in the casino, chase his losses.
"He was cursing under his breath and seemed to be in his own little world - fixated on the tables and all the machines around them," a witness said. "He looked really down in the mouth towards the end."
It's believed that Rooney's wife, Coleen, was out of town with their sons, seven-year-old Kai, three-year-old Klay and one-year-old Kit during the gambling spree.
His late-night gambling spree took place at Manchester's 235 Casino, where the Manchester United star is said to have a private account. Photo/Google
Daily Mail Online has contacted Rooney's agency for comment.
The England star has a history of gambling dating back to his teenage years at Everton.
He admitted in an autobiography that Coleen had been furious when he lost £50,000 ($93,888) while gambling early on in his career.
In 2008 he lost £65,000 ($122,054) in a two-hour gambling spree at 235 Casino.
In 2006, Rooney revealed he racked up £700,000 ($1.3 million) in debt in an England dressing-room gambling ring.
Rooney's account at the Manchester casino is believed to be linked to a credit card.
