Wayne Rooney: Auschwitz must be remembered

By Pascal Lemesre, Football League Editor | 09 June 2012

Following a visit to former Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz, England's Wayne Rooney admits he was moved by the experience and wants education of the atrocities to continue.

Wayne Rooney has said that young people have to be educated about what happened at concentration camps like Auschwitz.

Rooney, 26, was one of seven England team members to visit the Nazi site, which is around 60km from their Euro 2012 base in Krakow.

Speaking after the visit, Rooney said: "Kids nowadays are interested in footballers. I am sure that will get them interested.

"I am sure all of us who were there will speak of what we have seen. If a few more people understand it that's good."

Accompanied by Phil Jagielka, Joe Hart, Leighton Baines, Theo Walcott, Andy Carroll and Jack Butland, Rooney was struck most by a picture hanging in a building at Auschwitz, that depicted a Nazi officer directing an old man to his death.

"That guy who made all the decisions, whether they lived or died," added Rooney. "He's probably gone home after that, listened to music, had dinner with his family, as if nothing had happened. It's crazy."

Manchester United forward Rooney will miss England's opening two group games at the tournament against France and Sweden because of a ban for kicking out at Montenegro's Miodrag Dzudovic last year.