The Prince and Princess of Wales will cheer on opposing sides at Saturday’s Wales v England Six Nations match – after they were spotted greeting injured players ahead of the match at Principality Stadium today.
Kate, 43, patron of Rugby Football League (RFL), and Prince William, 40, who has been patron of the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) since 2016, are attending the much anticipated match.
There is likely some friendly rivalry in the air between the royal couple, as their respective patronages see them rooting for opposing teams in Cardiff on Saturday.
Ahead of the match, the Prince and Princess of Wales met injured players who are supported by the Welsh Rugby Charitable Trust.
The royals chatted with injured players inside the Sir Tasker Watkins Suite, a space at the Principality Stadium which is dedicated for use by the players and their families ahead of matches.
William is patron of the trust, which was set up to help players who have been severely injured while playing rugby in Wales, and their loved ones, inviting them to every Wales home game and hosting an annual family day.
They officially opened the suite, named after a Welsh justice and World War II veteran who was later president of of the Welsh Rugby Union, prior to attending England and Wales’ previous Six Nations clash on February 25.
Kate took over her Rugby role from her brother-in-law Prince Harry in 2022, who was forced to give up the patronage as part of the Megxit agreement.
William and Kate pictured on Saturday ahead of the Six Nations – during which they will root for opposing sides
The pair greeted injured players supported by the Welsh Rugby Charitable Trust at Principality Stadium ahead of tonight’s match
The Princess of Wales, who grew up watching rugby with her family, is known as one of the sportiest members of the Royal Family and has gamely taken on her husband in everything from dragon boating to wind buggy racing at royal engagements.
She has played tennis and hockey from a young age and is already royal patron of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club and is a frequent visitor to the Wimbledon Championships.
Less well known is her love of rugby. Her sister, Pippa, wrote in Vanity Fair magazine in 2014: ‘Rugby was a big thing for our family, we’d plan our weekends around the big matches.’
In the Daily Mail’s Palace Confidential podcast, Jo Elvin joked that the Wales family ‘may need a referee in house’ for the game – which forms part of the Six Nations Championship.
It’s unclear whether the royal children – Prince George, 11, Princess Charlotte, nine, and Prince Louis, six – are also split on which team they support: Wales for William, or England for Kate.
In fact, on Mike Tindall’s podcast The Good, The Bad and The Rugby, Prince William did joke that the question of which team the children support has become ‘quite the thing’ at home.
He said: ‘It’s become quite the thing in the house. [Catherine] is quite into it. I’m trying to stay out of it.’
And, in 2023, William remarked it would be a ‘tense journey home’ with his wife after a Six Nations Wales v England match in Cardiff.
It’s thought that George, Charlotte and Louis will watch the game in Windsor today.
William and Kate had met players at the Principality Stadium ahead of the earlier England v Wales Six Nations clash last month
They officially opened the Sr Tasker Watkins suite, named after the Welsh judge and World War II veteran who also served as president of the Welsh Rugby Union
Prince William’s sporting pedigree has been proven through a lifelong commitment to Aston Villa (pictured earlier this week at Villa Park)
He is, however, taking his role as Prince of Wales very seriously – committing himself to learning Welsh with help from language app Duolingo
Kate has always been keen to get stuck into her role as patron of the Rugby Football Union (seen here at Twickenham in February 2022)
Kate takes part in rugby drills at Maidenhead Rugby Club in June 2023 – as one of the unarguably sportiest members of the royal family
Kate is gradually returning to public duties after revealing she is in remission from cancer. She also has an engagement with the Irish Guards on St Patrick’s Day in London on Monday.
William is already, famously, a huge fan of Aston Villa after being taken to matches as a youngster.
He told the BBC in 2015 that he didn’t want to follow ‘run of the mill teams’ like Chelsea and Manchester United like his classmates.
The Prince, who is also patron of the Football Association, told the broadcaster: ‘I wanted to have a team that was more mid-table that could give me more emotional rollercoaster moments.’
William has also been showcasing how seriously he takes his role as Prince of Wales – after delivering his St David’s Day message entirely in Welsh on March 1.
He revealed last year that he had been using Duolingo to practice on the go ever since he was named Prince of Wales in 2022 following the death of his grandmother Queen Elizabeth II.
