Soccer fever – Ten staff at the Shakespeare Inn in Manchester city centre change their names to Wayne Rooney

A pub boss has instilled some World Cup spirit in his staff by convincing them to change their names to Wayne Rooney.

Ten staff at the Shakespeare Inn in Manchester city centre made the switch by deed poll to show their support for the striker and the England squad.

Boss Chris Hilditch hopes his stars behind the bar will enthuse customers during the tournament.

But asked whether he had led by example and followed suit, he replied: “No, I’m the boss – Fabio Capello.”

The staff all applied for a change of name through the UK Deed Poll Service and were granted their new names on Friday.

They will all wear T-shirts bearing their new names during the tournament to make sure customers know what to call them.

One Wayne Rooney, formerly Joanne Hill, 23, kitchen staff at the Bay Horse, said they had all decided to change their names in a show of support for the England squad during the tournament in South Africa.

She said: “The managers wanted to do something so we all sat down and decided to do this. It’s to show our support for England and show how much we’re behind them.”

Barmaid Wayne Rooney, aka Katie Hyett, told the BBC her family had yet to hear about her new moniker.

“I haven’t told them yet, it’s still a surprise,” the 24-year-old said.

“But my boyfriend is a bit shocked I’m now Wayne. He’s a Liverpool fan so he’s been sleeping on the sofa in protest.”

It is a sentiment shared by Andy Wilkinson, managing director of pub owner Clover Taverns, who has replicated the idea across the country – after changing his name to Sepp Blatter.

“We have over 100 Wayne Rooneys working throughout the country for the whole of the World Cup and I’m glad to say that we have 10 Fabio Capellos keeping them in control,” he said.

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