Prince William at a previous Aston Villa FC game (Image: Getty)
Prince William has shared his joy at England’s heroic win against Mexico in Mexico City. The three lions overcame a second half red for right back Jarell Quansah and a hostile home crowd to secure a quarter-final clash with Norway on Saturday.
William, who serves has served as the President of The Football Association (FA) since 2006 and officially became the FA’s Patron in 2024 said on Instagram: “Well done England!” He added: “Bring on the quarter final!” with an England flag emoji. He signed the post “W” meaning that he posted the message himself.
Just days ago, the Prince of Wales has hailed the World Cup as “brilliant” and said a successful tournament for England would be “winning it”.
William spoke about his love of football on a podcast, co-hosted by Taylor Swift’s new husband Travis Kelce, and during the good-natured chat joked about the King’s interest in soccer with the quip “my father hates football”.
In the pre-recorded chat, held a few days after England’s first World Cup match against Croatia, William was asked by Travis’ brother Jason Kelce, who co-hosts their New Heights podcast: “What in your mind is a successful World Cup for England?”
The future king replied “I think winning it”, and when quizzed if he would “cross the pond” if England made it all the way, he said: “Definitely. If we’re in the final.”
England took a huge leap towards making it to the competition’s finale with a win for the ages, which was seen by many as one of the biggest tests the three lions were likely to face.
England held on to claim victory causing jubilant scenes in Mexico City and across the UK (Image: James Manning/PA Wire)
Co-hosts Mexico had only lost only two of their previous 89 competitive games at the Estadio Azteca, which lies more than 2,200 metres above sea level, prior to their defeat to England.
The drama began early when forecasted thunderstorms struck around the Azteca stadium on Sunday evening UK time, eventually causing the kick-off to be delayed by an hour to 2am over risk of lightning strikes.
Outside the ground after the match, England fan Stuart Pearce, 62, described the matches as “one of the best games ever”.
He said: “When the Mexicans came out the whole thing vibrated – it was a great atmosphere, all the Mexicans were really friendly.
“We’ve not had one bit of trouble – the Mexicans are so friendly that one even bought us a train ticket today.”
