United defender Rio Ferdinand is the new England captain after John Terry was stripped of the armband over allegations that he had an extra-marital affair with the ex-girlfriend of City star Wayne Bridge.

England boss Fabio Capello informed 29-year-old Terry he had been relieved of his duties after the Chelsea captain drove to Wembley for a crunch meeting with the Italian, who has a reputation as a stern disciplinarian.

Ferdinand has been selected to replace Terry as skipper, with Liverpool's Steven Gerrard becoming vice-captain.

In a statement, Terry vowed to continue "giving everything" for the England team, and added: "I fully accept Fabio Capello's decision."

Capello made it clear that while Terry’s conduct on the field had been exactly what he wanted when he made his decision to appoint the central defender as skipper in August 2008, recent headlines about his personal life left him with little choice other than to remove the honour from the Barking-born player.

It is alleged that Terry had an affair with Vanessa Perroncel, the ex-girlfriend of England team-mate Wayne Bridge, also a former club-mate of Terry’s at Chelsea.

In a statement Capello said: "After much thought, I have made the decision that it will be best for me to take the captaincy away from John Terry.

"As a captain with the team, John Terry has displayed extremely positive behaviour. However, I have to take into account other considerations and what is best for all of the England squad.

"What is best for all of the England team has inspired my choice and John Terry was notified first.

"When I chose John Terry as captain, I also selected a vice-captain and also named a third choice. There is no reason to change this decision."

Meanwhile, Vanessa Perroncel said she would not be selling her story despite offers of up to £250,000 from newspapers.