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D.C. United has agreed to terms with former player Wayne Rooney to make him the club’s new manager, per The Athletic’s Pablo Maurer. The England all-time great landed at Dulles Airport in suburban Virginia on Sunday night to meet with club officials and it appears it didn’t take long to reach a deal.
The Washington Post also confirmed that a deal is done.
He had been in talks with the club for “weeks,” per the report. He recently resigned as manager of Derby County in June after a tumultuous season that resulted in relegation as a result of a points penalty for entering administration and breaching the English Football League’s profitability and sustainability rules.
“Today I met with the administrators to inform them of my decision that it was time for me to leave the club,” he said in a statement. “In fairness to them, they tried tremendously hard to change my decision but my mind was made up. My time at the club has been a rollercoaster of emotions, both highs and lows, but I have to say that I have enjoyed the challenge.”
His newest club won’t be a picnic, though. D.C. United and former manager Hernán Losada parted ways earlier this year and Chad Ashton took over in an interim role but it hasn’t been easy. The squad is in 13th place in MLS’s Eastern Conference and are fresh off a 7–0 drubbing at the hands of the Philadelphia Union. The loss was the worst blowout in the team’s history.
Rooney played for D.C. United from 2018 to 2020 before moving to Derby County.
