Wayne Rooney has to stick to the tough rules of I’m A Celebrity for seven days after arriving in Australia.
Wayne Rooney will now have to stick to the strict rules of I’m A Celebrity until the ITV show starts on November 16, after arriving in Australia. The Manchester United and England football legend will join 11 other celebrities in the Australian jungle, including comedian Leigh Francis, actress Joanna Page, and model Leomie Anderson.
Reports say Rooney will earn a big six-figure paycheck for being on the show, making him the highest-paid contestant of the 2026 series—though he’ll earn less than his wife Coleen did when she appeared in 2024. Now that he’s in Australia, he’ll have some limits on what he can do for the next week.
Earlier in November, it was revealed Rooney would be part of the 2026 cast, but he stayed busy before his trip. He worked as a pundit for Amazon Prime during Manchester United’s Champions League match against Roma and won the Pundit of the Year award at the Broadcast Sport Awards. It was lucky he packed in so much before flying halfway across the world, because he’ll be much less active for the next seven days.
Former contestant Jake Quickenden, who was on the show in 2014, told Metro that before the series starts, celebrities aren’t meant to wander far from their hotels. “They don’t lock you in your room, it’s not like lockdown,” he said. “You can go outside for fresh air, but you can’t roam the streets. One, you might be spotted, and two, the other contestants are staying nearby.”
The second rule is there so the celebrities don’t know who their campmates are before the show, to keep the surprise. But with social media and the line-up leaking online last week, some celebs probably already know who they’ll be sharing the jungle with.
This year, Rooney won’t be the only sportsperson in the jungle. He will be joined by Ade Adepitan, a former Paralympic wheelchair basketball player turned TV presenter. ITV is said to be adjusting the camp to suit Ade, who has some mobility challenges after contracting polio as a child.
There’s also another celebrity from Merseyside joining the camp—Liverpool-born actress Claire Sweeney. She will be there alongside Gavin and Stacey’s Joanna Page. The cast includes several social media stars, like Sharky, Chloe Burrows, and Jack Skipper, though the line-up might still change if anyone pulls out before the show starts.
Here’s the full reported list of the I’m A Celebrity 2026 line-up:
– Ade Adepitan – TV presenter and former wheelchair basketball player
– Leomie Anderson – Model and TV presenter
– Chloe Burrows – TV personality
– Leigh Francis – Comedian and TV presenter
– Mariella Frostrop – Journalist and TV presenter
– AJ Odudu – TV presenter
– Joanna Page – Actress and TV panelist
– Wayne Rooney – TV pundit and former footballer
– Sharky – Social media star and member of ‘Beta Squad’
– Jack Skipper – Comedian
– Claire Sweeney – Actress and singer
– Ricky Wilson – Singer and Kaiser Chiefs frontman