Gary Lineker has shared an amusing tale about Wayne Rooney's hair dye disaster during the former striker's stint as a BBC pundit at Euro 2024 in Germany.
The presenter disclosed the incident on the Rest is Football podcast this week, revealing how the Manchester United legend inadvertently turned his hair and beard far too dark before appearing on live television.
Rooney had been working alongside Lineker and the BBC Sport broadcasting team throughout the tournament two years ago when the mishap occurred.
The accidental transformation left the ex-England captain looking noticeably different ahead of one of the channel's evening programmes during the competition.
The blunder happened following an extended day of socialising in the German capital, which began with lunch and continued well into the evening.
Lineker recounted how Rooney had stayed out with the group before heading off with his agent Paul Stretford, only to later ask if Lineker's son Harry fancied continuing the night out.
After what appears to have been a lengthy evening, Rooney showered and applied a hair product he had purchased in Dubai.
Gary Lineker has shared an amusing tale about Wayne Rooney's hair dye disaster during the former striker's stint as a BBC pundit at Euro 2024 in Germany
|GETTY
"Oh I've had a nightmare. I had this stuff, I got it in Dubai, I couldn't read the instructions because they were all in Arabic," Rooney told Lineker when explaining the situation.
The result was dramatically darker hair and facial hair.
Lineker's son Harry, who works as a producer, was the one who first raised the alarm about Rooney's predicament.
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"Harry then calls me and says: 'Wayne needs to talk to you, he's got a problem. He's had a shower and dyed his beard and his hair,'" Lineker recalled.
With a broadcast scheduled for the following evening covering an Italy fixture, the situation required urgent attention.
When Rooney arrived at the studio, the BBC's makeup department sprang into action, applying various colours to both his beard and hair to mask the overly dark shade.
Lineker praised their efforts, noting they managed to significantly reduce the visible change in Rooney's appearance before cameras rolled.
Approximately twenty minutes before going on air, Rooney turned to Lineker and asked whether they should acknowledge the situation to viewers.
Who has won the last five World Cup finals? | PALineker suggested two options: either make light of it at the start of the programme with a quip about Italy changing their colours "as has someone on our panel," or simply ignore it and keep an eye on social media reactions.
"In the end we decided to do that. Nobody really noticed. Makeup did a great job!" Lineker said.
The incident is thought to have taken place ahead of the Italy versus Croatia group stage encounter, which ended dramatically when Mattia Zaccagni equalised in the 98th minute after Luka Modric had earlier put the Croatians ahead.
Rooney now works as a pundit for the BBC and often features on Match of the Day.