Manchester City and England star Phil Foden has reportedly engaged his lawyers after malicious online hoaxesclaimed one of his children had died and another was battling cancer.
According to Mail Online, the winger has been the target of a wave of false social media rumours, with users circulating AI-generated images that appeared to show Foden and his partner Rebecca Cooke crying alongside one of their children.
A legal team is now working with Phil Foden’s management to have the fabricated stories and doctored images taken down from various platforms.
On Facebook, fake posts falsely claimed that Foden’s eldest son, Ronnie (6), had died. Another post from an account called Man City Fan Lover alleged that Foden was “struggling to stay focused on football” after his four-year-old daughter, True, was supposedly diagnosed with cancer.
Foden’s partner, Rebecca Cooke, who shares three children with the footballer — including their youngest, Phil Jr. — publicly addressed the distressing fabrications on Instagram, calling them “sickening.”
“We are aware of the pages and accounts spreading these stories,” Cooke wrote. “They are completely false and very disturbing.
I don’t understand how people can make up these things about anyone, especially children. It’s sickening.
We are all absolutely fine, thank God, & thank you for all your concerns. We are doing everything we can to stop them.
Please report any posts or pages you come across sharing these false stories.”
The fake claims have sparked widespread condemnation online, with many calling for tighter regulation of AI-generated content and stronger penalties for those spreading harmful misinformation about public figures and their families.
