Rony reveals his Polish Jewish roots after visiting Auschwitz

Wayne Rony, former striker for the England national team and Manchester United, has revealed that he recently discovered his maternal grandmother's family was of Polish Jewish descent. This revelation came during his appearance in the new documentary series "The Real Rooneys", which explores his family life.

Rony said in the fourth episode of the series: "I recently discovered that my maternal grandmother's family was of Polish Jews." When a member of the production team pointed out that this means, according to Jewish tradition based on maternal lineage, he is considered Jewish, Rony replied: "I am Catholic, but I have always asked questions like: why aren't we Jewish?" before joking about the possibility of producing a new series titled "Rony the Jewish."

The revelation of these family roots coincided with Rony's trip to Poland with his wife, Coleen, and their two sons, Kitt, aged 10, and Cass, aged 8. Kitt had shown an interest in World War II after studying it at school, which prompted the family to visit Krakow before heading to Auschwitz, a journey Rony described as part of his son's education.

Rony visited Auschwitz for the first time in 2012 during his participation with England in the European Championship hosted by Poland and Ukraine, alongside several teammates. He stated at the time that seeing what happened in the camp, especially the clothes and shoes of the children who were killed there, was a difficult experience for him, adding that the visit "put a lot of things into perspective."

The series 'The Real Rooneys', consisting of 10 episodes, is available on Disney+. It delves into Rony's family life and his career after stepping away from management, along with details of his life with his wife and children.