Prince William looks serious at Homewards anniversary event in Lambeth© Getty

Prince William faces difficult dilemma ahead of family holiday

The Prince of Wales apologised for his "hoarse voice" after the England semi-final

Online Royal CorrespondentLondon
July 11, 2024

The Prince of Wales might be facing a tricky dilemma this weekend as he faces a diary clash with two of his favourite events.

The Wimbledon Men's Single final is scheduled to take place in Wimbledon just hours before England face Spain in the Euro 2024 final in Berlin.

Traditionally, Prince William would join his wife, the Princess of Wales, at the men's and women's finals at the tennis tournament, but it's unclear whether Kate will make an appearance amid her cancer treatment.

Kate, who is patron of the AELTC, usually presents the trophies to the winners on Centre Court, but if she is unable to fulfil ceremonial duties, the role could fall to William.

However, it's likely that the Prince, given his role as President of the Football Association (FA), will travel to Germany for the final. The Duchess of Gloucester has also been tipped to step in for Kate amid her absence. 

William attended England's Group Stage match against Denmark where he was reunited with King Frederik of Denmark and Frederik's 13-year-old daughter, Princess Josephine. The game ended in a 1-1 draw.

© Getty

Prince William and King Frederik at the England vs Denmark game

The Prince also witnessed England's nail-biting quarter-final against Switzerland, which saw them earn their place in the semi-final after a tense penalty shootout.

© Getty

William celebrated England's win against Switzerland

While William couldn't travel to Dortmund for England's clash against The Netherlands in their Euro semi-final, he sent a jubilant congratulatory message to the Three Lions after Ollie Watkins scored a goal in the 90th minute to make it a 2-1 victory to the final.

The future king said: "What a beauty, Ollie! Congratulations England! #EURO2024 Finalists W."

© Getty

William congratulated the players, including Bukayo Saka, after the quarter-final

Meanwhile, the King sent a personal message to Gareth Southgate, telling the England manager: "My wife and I join all our family in wishing you the warmest congratulations on reaching the final of the U.E.F.A. European Championship – and in sending our very best wishes for Sunday's match.

"If I may encourage you to secure victory before the need for any last minute wonder-goals or another penalties drama, I am sure the stresses on the nation’s collective heart rate and blood pressure would be greatly alleviated! Good luck, England."

After a busy few months of engagements, the royals are expected to dial down their duties for their annual summer holiday, with the Prince and Princess of Wales's three children breaking up from school.

Euros 2024: get to know the Three Lions

Star players 

England are the bookmakers' favourites to triumph in Germany, and with three star players like these, it's no surprise...

  • Harry Kane  – Captain and striker
  • Jude Bellingham  – Attacking midfielder/Forward
  • Phil Foden – Attacking midfielder/Forward

Highest earners

Football is renowned for astronomical player wages, and England boasts some of the games most well remunerated ballers...

  • Jude Bellingham is the highest earner of the Three Lions with a reported weekly salary of £343,718.58. 
  • Harry Kane earns a reported £343,656.43 per week. 
  • John Stones is the third highest earning player with a reported £250,000 weekly salary. 

Goal threat

With a team packed with goalscorers, it would be an abject failure should they fail to make the net bulge with regularity... 

  • Harry Kane is England's all-time top scorer with over 400 goals for club and country. 
  • Phil Foden has enjoyed his best-ever season for Manchester City, claiming 17 goals and eight assists.
  • Bukayo Saka has scored 11 goals for his country and has been named England men's player of the year for the past two seasons.

High-profile WAGs 

It's not just the action in the stands that enthralls at major tournaments, England's WAGs line-up also garners attention. Here are three of its most high-profile members...

  • Dani Dyer: Love Island winner has been in a relationship with West Ham star Jarred Bowen since 2021, and the pair welcomed twin girls in May 2023.
  • Iris Law: Jude's daughter (Law not Bellingham) is believed to be beau'd-up with Liverpool player Trent Alexander-Arnold. 
  • Laura Celia Valk: Dutch model boasting more than half a million Instagram followers is understood to be dating Jude Bellingham.

"Hell of a goal"

William apologised for his "hoarse voice" as he marked the one-year anniversary of his homelessness project, Homewards, in Lambeth on Thursday.

The Prince met representatives working to eradicate homelessness in six locations: Newport, Lambeth, Belfast, Aberdeen, Sheffield and three neighbouring Dorset towns, Poole, Bournemouth and Christchurch.

© Getty

Talk turned to the football, naturally

The topic of England's win and Aston Villa – the club William supports – came up in conversation, with the Prince saying: "I've got a hoarse voice from last night!

"I had a little moment when I thought 'He [Ollie Watkins] might do this'!? I was willing him on when he came on. It was a hell of a goal."

William said he wants to instil the "self-belief" shown by the England team into the organisations signed up to his project to end homelessness.

© Getty

William delivered a speech in which he said he believes homelessness can be ended

In a moving speech, the Prince said: "Homelessness is a complex societal issue, and one that touches the lives of far too many people in our society. However, I truly believe that it can be ended. 

 "I created Homewards because I wanted us to look at the issue of homelessness through a different lens: to inspire a movement to prevent people from ever experiencing homelessness in the first place. 

 "I know this will take a huge effort. And I know that demonstrating that homelessness is not an inevitable part of our society will take time.

I have though, been struck by the scale of the work that has been carried out since the launch of Homewards and I hope it is a powerful reminder to everyone of what can be achieved when we work together towards a shared goal.

"Over the past twelve months, across our six locations an incredible amount of work has been done to build the foundations for success."

LISTEN: Inside the King and Keir Starmer's relationship

Sign up to HELLO! Daily for all the latest and best royal coverage

Email Address

By entering your details, you are agreeing to HELLO! Magazine User Data Protection Policy. You can unsubscribe at any time. For more information, please click here.

More Royalty

See more