That’s because 9 of the 12 highest profile football WAGs are known to have achieved the minimum level of academic qualifications needed (5 GCSEs at grade C or above) to get on in life. Coleen McLoughlin, partner of Manchester United star Wayne Rooney, holds 10 good GCSE passes while Theo Walcott’s other half Melanie Slade recently passed her A-level exams.

Even higher achieving partners of England’s international football stars include Lisa Roughead, partner of midfielder Michael Carrick, who holds a university degree in business and Michaela Henderson-Thynne, the on-off girlfriend of Middlesbrough winger Stewart Downing, who is currently studying for a law degree.

Away from academia, several WAGs boast vocational qualifications. Toni Poole, girlfriend of England captain John Terry, is a qualified beauty therapist while Joe Cole’s fiancée Carly Zucker is a qualified personal trainer.

Not so high achievers

The bottom three in the league of WAG academic excellence makes bad reading for Victoria Beckham, Cheryl Cole and Abbey Clancy. Cheryl and Abbey’s lack of classroom achievement placed them at the foot of the table and reflects the results of a recent survey that revealed one in seven women feel all they need to succeed is the luck to find a rich husband.

Do you agree with the LSC? Are WAGs setting a good example?

Posh, with just a handful of GCSEs to her name, must be considered the ultimate WAG success story given the global popularity of the Spice Girls and her role as half of one of the world’s most famous celebrity brands. However, the LSC warns that the odds of following in her footsteps are incredibly thin. While dating a football star is an appealing short cut to fame and fortune, the majority of WAGs prove that is remains essential to have qualifications to fall back on.