ROONEY TO EA:
Football star signs on for FIFA's 2006 season
15:14 Wayne Rooney is no stranger to appearing on boxes (well, the television kind anyway), but his recently announced deal with Electronic Arts is set to place him centre forward in a different arena - the videogames market. That's right, the Manchester United striker is now the official face of the latest game in the EA's FIFA franchise, the imaginatively titled FIFA 06.
"I'm a big fan of EA's FIFA series and I'm really looking forward to getting my hands on the final version", says Rooney. "The game is very popular with many other players, especially when we travel together for away matches, and it's a great honour for a young player like myself to be chosen to be featured on the cover of FIFA".
So that's the sales bit taken care of then, but what else is in store for the latest iteration of EA's long-running footie franchise? In an attempt to keep pace with Konami's upcoming Pro Evolution Soccer 5, EA are looking to score a whole host of new features in the back of the net. Alongside an all-new management mode and full online play, armchair athletes can look forward to complete customisation of everything from play styles to the players themselves.
Watch this space for more information on the game as FIFA '06 gets ready to kick off in autumn this year.
Chris Hicks