THE UK’S PRINCE William, the new Prince of Wales, has raised eyebrows after saying in Wales that he supports the English football team ahead of the World Cup.
“I’ve supported England since I was quite small but I support Welsh rugby and that’s my way of doing it,” he said on a visit to the Welsh parliament.
The English and Welsh football teams are due to play against each other in Group B of the World Cup on 29 November, with the Prince of Wales saying he will be supporting both teams.
“I’m telling everyone, I’m supporting both definitely,” he said.
William is the President of England’s Football Association but also the recently-appointed Prince of Wales following his father’s Charles ascent to the throne.
“I happily support Wales over England in the rugby,” he said.
“I’ve got to be able to play carefully in my affiliations because I worry otherwise if I suddenly drop England to support Wales, then that doesn’t look right for the sport either.”
Last month, William and Kate, Princess of Wales, travelled to Anglesey and Swansea on 27 September, when the royal mourning of Queen Elizabeth ended, to meet people and communities in Wales.
Both are understood to be keen to pave their own path in the roles, building trust and respect of the people of Wales over time.
On Tuesday evening, Welsh actor Michael Sheen questioned whether William’s role as Prince of Wales was appropriate given his support of the England football team.
Sheen’s comments followed William’s visit to the team’s training centre on Monday, where he presented them with their shirts for the World Cup in Qatar.
“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?” Sheen tweeted.
A clip of Sheen performing a rousing pre-match speech for the Welsh team on a TV show went viral and the actor has visited the squad.
Additional reporting by Lauren Boland
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