Wayne Rooney, while he was on the books of D.C. United in the swansong of his quite brilliant career, often spent his downtime playing golf with the United States President during his first term in office. And the former Manchester United, England and Everton centre-forward has recently revealed the protocol in place if Trump was subject to a nuclear attack while they were playing on a golf course.
Commonly regarded as one of the best teenagers in football history, Rooney came through the ranks on the blue half of Merseyside, and he caught the attention of world football’s greatest with his bulldozing performances. Sir Alex Ferguson’s United won the well-contested race for his signature and his spell at Old Trafford was the stuff of legend.
In the summer of 2018, the 120-cap, 53-goal England international moved across the pond to join D.C. United – and he continued his goalscoring exploits in the States. All in all, he plundered 39 goal contributions (25 goals and 14 assists) in 52 outings for the Major League Soccer (MLS) outfit but did spend a lot of time perfecting his golf game. And that included playing with now-79-year-old Trump.
Wayne Rooney – Club Career Statistics
Club
Games
Goals
Assists
Manchester United
559
253
142
Everton
117
28
8
D.C. United
52
25
14
Derby County
36
7
3
Wayne Rooney Reveals Nuclear Attack Protocol When Playing Golf with US President Donald Trump
When he was plying his trade in the States after winning all manner of silverware at Old Trafford, Rooney made a trip to Trump National golf course after a friend flew in from Manchester to pay him a visit. They were later joined by none other than Trump – and, during his recent appearance on A League of Their Own, the 40-year-old revealed the lengths they went through to keep the President safe.
“When he was the President the first time, I went to play golf. My friend was over from Manchester. We went to play golf at his course and when we go there, there were sniffer dogs and there was security everywhere. And he said, ‘The President’s coming in, he’s playing with you’.
“We’re playing with snipers everywhere. There’s all kinds. It was surreal. There were three big Escalades there. And one of them had a box on his back. So, I said to him, ‘What’s that for?’. He said if there’s a nuclear attack, he gets put in that, and airlifted out. So I was like, ‘What happens to us?’. He was like ‘You are f***ed’!”
It’s not the first time Rooney – widely regarded as one of the best English footballers of all time – has recalled his golf round with Trump. On The Overlap last year, he said: “The maddest thing about it was we had [Rudy] Giuliani in the buggy behind us, then there were about 50–100 golf buggies that were all security.
“There was a boat in the lake with snipers,” he continued before adding further detail about the lengths Trump goes to in order to remain safe at all times, even when playing golf. “There were snipers in the bushes, and I was like ‘What’s going on here?!'”
A liking to golf evidently runs in the Trump family as his granddaughter, Kai, recently played in a Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) competition, though her debut didn’t go to plan. Having entered the competition through a sponsorship exemption, the 18-year-old finished with a first-round 13-over-par 83 and, thus, landed herself a spot at the bottom of the leaderboard.
All statistics per Transfermarkt – correct as of 16/11/2025
