Wayne and Coleen Rooneys’ spending habits laid bare in £4.3m legal battle

England footballer Wayne Rooney and his wife Coleen made up "absurd" excuses to avoid paying former aides £4.3million, a court heard today.

They refused to pay commission to their old sports management agency on the grounds their contract was a "mistake", the court was told.

Then, when they discovered they were being sued for the unpaid money, the couple, worth an estimated £35million, claimed they were victims of "exploitation" because of their celebrity status.

The allegations emerged as Proactive sports management agency went to court to claim back the commission they say is owed to them by the Rooneys, pictured right.

They say all the money came from lucrative sponsorship deals they secured before Rooney and Coleen dumped the firm and returned to their long term agent Paul Stretford.

The case is expected to hear details of the couple's lavish spending including a £18,934 bill for Rooney's stag week in Ibiza and a £2,622 first-class return plane ticket to fly Coleen's assistant to pick up jewellery from New York.

Other spending by Coleen included a £864 bill for food and drink at her hen weekend in Miami, £565.76 on a dress fitting in Manchester and £2,525.01 on a night out to see Westlife.

The Rooneys did not attend Manchester mercantile court today for the hearing but are expected to give evidence next week.

Proactive signed the England star early in his career and secured highly profitable deals with companies such as Nike, Coca-Cola and EA Sports.

But when Stretford lost his job at the agency, the couple are said to have withheld money from Proactive despite contracts guaranteeing it up to 20 per cent of their off-field earnings.

Representing Proactive, Mr Ian Mill QC said: "It appears that Mr and Mrs Rooney regard these charges against them as exploitative and financially driven.

"If by financially driven' they mean that the claimant wishes to recover the substantial sums due to it then I would agree - but it is hardly a ground for complaint or criticism."