Prince William, President of the Football Association, visited the England players to hand out their squad numbers before they set off for Qatar. Much to the dislike of Welsh football fans.
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Prince William’s controversial engagement
Prince William handed Gareth Southgate’s team their squad number. The Prince of Wales then told the Three Lions that ‘the country is behind you’ before saying, ‘I'll see you in the final’.
Welsh actor Michael Sheen, who is highly patriotic and has been very vocal in the past about his criticism of the Royal Family, is unhappy, to say the least, with the Prince of Wales. Sheen has taken to Twitter to express his annoyance with the heir to the throne. The actor said:
He can, of course, support whoever he likes and as President of FA his role makes visit understandable - but surely, he sees holding the title Prince of Wales at same time is entirely inappropriate? Not a shred of embarrassment? Or sensitivity to the problem here?
He can, of course, support whoever he likes and as Pres of FA his role makes visit understandable - but surely he sees holding the title Prince of Wales at same time is entirely inappropriate? Not a shred of embarrassment? Or sensitivity to the problem here? #PrinceofWaleshttps://t.co/Hoanq9snXt
— michael sheen 💙 (@michaelsheen) November 15, 2022
One social media user agreed, saying:
One hopes he will do something to support Wales, too, considering he is our Prince!
However, this potential blunder by Prince William seems to have relit the fuse for the debate on the Prince of Wales title itself. Many commenters were more concerned with doing away with the Prince of Wales title than which team Prince William was supporting.
One user explained:
His support of England is not the issue; it’s his holding of an archaic title which symbolises subjugation and historic rule. That is what is inappropriate.
The Prince of Wales ‘can’t lose’
A Kensington Palace spokesperson told ITV News that the Prince of Wales was ‘extremely proud’ of Wales’s achievement and wished them well in the tournament.
Prince William visited the Welsh Parliament for the first time as Prince of Wales. During the visit, His Royal Highness addressed the question of who he will be supporting at the World Cup after the criticism he received.
The Prince of Wales told the presiding officer of the Welsh Parliament:
I’m supporting both, definitely. I can’t lose.
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He then added:
An England v Wales World Cup final would be the best, that would be pretty good.
According to The Mirror, Prince William took the opportunity to justify his allegiances. The Prince explained that the Welsh football team never qualified for the big tournaments when he was growing up, so he naturally supported England.
Prince William agrees that Wales qualifying for the World Cup is an immense achievement for the team and a big deal for the country. The last time Wales made it to a World Cup was in 1958.
The Prince said:
Getting to the World Cup is a big deal, and I’ll be supporting Wales through the process.
But, the heir to the throne is in a delicate position. He acquiesced:
I've got to be able to play carefully with my affiliations because I worry otherwise if I suddenly drop England to support Wales, then that doesn't look right for the sport either. So I can't do that.
Sources used:
- ITV News: Prince William says he 'supports both' Wales and England in World Cup after Michael Sheen criticism
- The Independent: Prince William subtly hits back at Michael Sheen in World Cup row
- The Mirror: Prince William addresses World Cup row after Michael Sheen's England support blast
