EXCLUSIVEWhat next for Rebekah Vardy? Why WAG is hoping husband Jamie lands mega-money contract abroad as couple consider their next moves after he announced he's leaving Leicester
Rebekah Vardy needs her husband Jamie to secure one final lucrative contract in football so she can continue her 'ultimate WAG life' with a £1.6million legal bill owed to Coleen Rooney hanging over her, a source told MailOnline today.
The former England striker, 38, believes he can play on into his 40s, and is being tipped to get big-money offers from the MLS in the US or the Saudi Pro League.
Rebekah is said to be desperate to have her own reality TV show.
'She will also want to hope he will go to Saudi or the US where she wont have the cloud that hangs over her in the UK and she can start to rebuild her life as a public figure and hopefully start to earn again', MailOnline's showbiz insider said.
'Rebekah will be wanting to make sure his next move will be lucrative to allow her to live the life she's accustomed to but also to help pay of her legal fees.
'Now that she has limited earning potential apart from her property portfolio she will need to make sure he is earning enough to keep her and their five children living the ultimate wag life'.
If Jamie stays in the UK, he has also been heavily tipped with a move to Ryan Reynolds' Wrexham if they are promoted to the English Championship in May.
The footballer has said he is 'devastated' to be leaving - but another two-year deal matching his £140,000-a-week deal at Leicester will be music to his ears, and his wife Rebekah's.
'I want to keep playing' and have the 'desire and ambition to achieve so much more', he said today.
A fresh start for the Vardys abroad might suit Rebekah, it has been claimed
The decision to commission a full documentary on controversial WAG Rebekah Vardy, 43, is being pondered by entertainment channel U&W
Coleen Rooney and Rebekah Vardy watch England v Wales at UEFA Euro 2016 in France
Earlier this month the Daily Mail's Katie Hind revealed the little-known network U&W has been in negotiations with Ms Vardy for several months over a fly-on-the-wall documentary that she is, for good reason, very keen for them to screen.
Not the least of those reasons is the fact that she now faces a £1.6million legal bill after a week earlier calling full-time on her high-profile court battle with fellow WAG, and former friend, Coleen Rooney – dubbed the 'Wagatha Christie' trial.
Bosses at the broadcaster have commissioned a pilot, but have remained undecided over whether they will agree to a full series and a bundle of cash.
The prospect is clearly appealing to 43-year-old Vardy, and would likely help to resurrect both her finances and her reputation in the wake of the trial.
The proposed show would give unrivalled access to her life, allowing cameras into her £3million luxury Lincolnshire home and promising to share an insight into her life as a glamorous mother of five children.
Rebekah has decided to be magnanimous in High Court defeat to Coleen – an astonishing about-turn after a six-year legal battle which has cost millions and led to considerable public mudslinging and recrimination.
Her statement, issued through her new agent, simply said that she was 'respectfully disappointed' that the appeal was not successful.
'Now we just wish to move on and look to the future,' it added.
The couple must find more than £1million after Becky Vardy lost the Wagatha Christie case with Coleen Rooney
Coleen won the High Court battle of the WAGs. Ms Vardy cried while giving evidence
Rebekah was voted off I'm a Celeb early. Coleen got to the final
One source who knows Rebekah well said: 'U&W have been unsure about commissioning a programme because Rebekah has been so, so mean in the past.
'Do they want to make a programme with her? They have been wondering. They tried a pilot to see what she was like and whether it would work.
'The problem some of the execs have is whether the public like her enough to tune in. She has been so horrible in the past so you can't help thinking that this new, grown-up approach is an attempt to reinvent herself as a nicer human being and change her ways.
'There is no getting away from the fact that Rebekah would be hugely entertaining, but U&W is aimed at women and Rebekah has been pretty foul over the years. They are not sure women like her - they prefer Coleen.'
A move for her husband away from Leicester will probably help seal a deal.
Jamie Vardy will leave Leicester at the end of the season to bring an end to one of the most remarkable stories in English football history, leaving Foxes fans bereft.
The 38-year-old joined Leicester from non-league Fleetwood for £1million in 2012 and went on to become arguably the greatest player in the history of the club.
It came two days after Vardy took to social media to express his 'anger and sadness' at a season he called a 'total embarrassment' and a 's***show' with Leicester having been consigned to relegation with five matches still to play.
During his time at King Power Stadium, Vardy helped City win the Premier League and the FA Cup for the first time in their history and also won the Golden Boot in 2020.
Although he turns 39 in January, Mail Sport understands Vardy does not plan to call it a day and has expressed confidence in the past that he can continue playing beyond his 40th birthday.
It came after a tumultuous period on and off the pitch for Jamie. Leicester have already been relegated from the Premier League while his wife Rebekah has been ordered to pay Coleen Rooney £1.6million in legal costs after losing the notorious Wagatha Christie High Court case with her WAG rival.
There are rumours that a new lucrative deal in the US, Saudi Arabia or with Ryan Reynolds' Wrexham could be on the table as he leaves Leicester after 13 years.
Confirming the news of his exit, Vardy – who also won 26 caps for England – said: 'To the fans of Leicester: gutted this day is coming, but I knew it was going to come eventually.
'It has been 13 unbelievable years at this club, with lots of success, some downs, but the majority all highs. It's finally time to call it a day, which I'm devastated about but I think the timing is right.
Rebekah and Jamie Vardy could be about to move abroad for a final contract in football for the 38-year-old
He also helped steer the Foxes to their first ever FA Cup win after beating Chelsea in the final and they won the Championship last year
Leicester's Premier League win in 2016 - thanks in huge part to his goals - is one of the most extraordinary stories in modern football
FC Halifax Town spent £15,000 on Vardy, he went to Fleetwood and then to Leicester in 2012
'I just want to sincerely thank you all for taking you in as one of your own. Leicester will always have a massive place in my heart and I'll make sure I'll be following in the years to come in what I hope will be even more success for the club.
'As for now, this is my goodbye, but you will see me again soon I promise. Thank you.'
Vardy's rise from the fifth tier of English football to its very pinnacle has been little short of remarkable.
One fan said today: 'The greatest player to ever kick ball. There will never be another like him. Words can never do justice to explain what this man has done for us. Jamie Vardy. God'.
Vardy, who will make his final appearance at the King Power Stadium against Ipswich on May 18 before taking his leave a week later at Bournemouth, played his part in Leicester's 'Great Escape' at the end of the 2014-15 season.
His goals - he scored in a record 11 consecutive Premier League fixtures - were a major factor in the club's 5000/1 title charge, which exposed him to Champions League football, and he also picked up an FA Cup winners' medal in 2021.
The latter was a success he dedicated to the club's former chairman Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, one of five people killed in a helicopter crash close to the stadium in October 2018.
Those memories will remain with him forever, but his exit will be tinged with sadness.
Vardy added: 'Nine years ago, we did the impossible, we won the Premier League. We then went on to win the FA Cup - that was for you, Vichai. We reached the Champions League quarter-finals. Before that, we pulled off the great escape.
'Those good memories will last a lifetime. My one regret - and I'm devastated about this - is that I'm not saying farewell to you on the back of a much better season. This isn't the way I wanted my career here to finish.
'Finally, this isn't retirement. I want to keep playing and doing what I enjoy most, scoring goals. Hopefully there's one or two more for Leicester between now and the end of the season and many more in the future.
'I might be 38, but I've still got the desire and ambition to achieve so much more.'
Whether his future lies in English football is another matter. There is thought to be interest from clubs in Major League Soccer and Saudi Arabia, though Vardy believes he can still score at the highest level.
If a Premier League side offered him a deal, it would likely be a heavily performance-based one.
Even during a dire season for Leicester, which will end in an immediate return to the Championship, he still led the attack for much of the campaign, scoring eight goals in 32 appearances.
He was trusted by both Steve Cooper and Ruud van Nistelrooy and is one of the few players to emerge with some credit this term.
Vardy's contract expires this summer and he has clocked up 496 appearances for Leicester. If he appears in their final four games of the season, he would reach 500. He stands on 198 goals, which leaves another target within reach.
One of English football's most colourful characters, Vardy was released by Sheffield Wednesday aged 16 and built his career in English's football's midnight zone, first with Stocksbridge Park Steels and then Halifax Town.
Hero of Leicester's 2015-16 fairy tale Jamie Vardy will leave the club at the end of the season
The striker stuck with Leicester after they went back down to the Championship and helped guide them back
Vardy has had to handle taunts from rival fans about Rebekah's 'Wagatha Christie' case with Wayne Rooney's wife
Vardy suffered relegation this season and previously described the campaign as a 's***show'
Even when he rose to the top of the game, Vardy has never lost that raw edge to his game.
He still loves winding up opposition supporters and has to handle taunts towards aimed at him and his family – often relating to the infamous 'Wagatha Christie' saga – wherever he goes.
It feels unlikely that Vardy would wish to bow out completely on such a disappointing note.
After Leicester's relegation was confirmed by a 1-0 home defeat against Liverpool on April 20, he posted an emotional message on his social media channels taking responsibility.
Leicester chairman Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha said: 'Jamie is unique. He is a special player and an even more special person.
'He holds a place in the hearts of everyone connected to Leicester City, and he certainly has my deepest respect and affection. I am endlessly grateful for everything he has given to this club.'
