William, Prince of Wales

[canuckcutie]

William will be in NYC in Sept for an EarthShot Summit as well as some additional engagements and meetings.

Maybe William will get to experience his own slow moving paparazzi “chase” across a block or two of NYC 🤣

[tiggertoo]

Any thoughts on the ‘scandal’ that William didn’t go to Australia to see the World Cup?

I thought it would have been nice if he went but kind of amazed at the backlash he has been receiving.

Everyone saying that if it was the men playing of course he would have gone. But how do they know?

[Oxynia]

It's not like going to Yorkshire or even the continent...flying all the way to Australia is a massive commitment, and requires a large gap in one's diary. I'm not surprised that he couldn't just pick up and go on a moment's notice, and I'm not convinced it had anything to do with it being the women's team. Manufactured drama, as far as I can see.

[Auroranorth]

Yeah, it's basically a full day's trip each way, plus however long he would be there. Would it be nice if he could go, sure, but it's not a scandal that he didn't IMO. And if he had gone, he'd probably get complaints about junketing around watching football and not working.

[tabby]

Mar 18, 2005 10:57:52 GMT -4 Auroranorth said:

And if he had gone, he'd probably get complaints about junketing around watching football and not working.

Not to mention the complaints about his carbon footprint.

[MrsOldManBalls]

Don’t forget the wasting of taxpayer money

[cancan]

And heaven forbid he leave Catherine at home. We'd get endless speculation about how they lead separate lives.

I do hope he has something special planned for the team -- a reception at a palace, for instance.

[Ladybug]

A royal commentator I follow on IG was having an absolute hissy fit over this and kept posting pictures of QEII giving the trophy to the England captain in 1966 when they won the World Cup. "William missed out on an iconic shot like this one!" First, is it really iconic? Does anyone outside of the UK think of this picture when they think of the World Cup? I suspect no. And second, the World Cup final was played at Wembley Stadium that year, so Elizabeth did not have to fly around the globe to be there! William would've been raked over the coals for flying (along with staff and security) to Australia for a football match. You can't justify the taxpayer cost and environmental impact.

Is Charlotte on a soccer/football team? I wondered why she was the only kid with him in the video. It would've been great to have all the kids in the video, so it doesn't appear as if the thought process was "it's girls' football so let's just have Charlotte." The national team making it to the final was something for men, women, boys, and girls to celebrate. But I think I remember William took Charlotte to her soccer practice, so maybe she wanted to be alongside her dad for the video.

[phillipa]

Letizia and Infanta Sofia were there, and Spain is equally far from Australia (and Sofia is a kid). And aren't the royals on holiday right now? I don't think they can blame their calendars.

I dunno y'all. I think Will and Kate both should have gone. Will is the future King, and Kate is a known sports lover. I don't have the same vitriol for their decision not to go as some others I've seen on the Internet, but, it is kind of bad optics to have England's women in the final and not go. I have no proof of this accusation but if it had been the men, I think he would have gone.

[cancan]

Aug 22, 2023 12:12:37 GMT -4 phillipa said:

Letizia and Infanta Sofia were there, and Spain is equally far from Australia (and Sofia is a kid). And aren't the royals on holiday right now? I don't think they can blame their calendars.

I dunno y'all. I think Will and Kate both should have gone. Will is the future King, and Kate is a known sports lover. I don't have the same vitriol for their decision not to go as some others I've seen on the Internet, but, it is kind of bad optics to have England's women in the final and not go. I have no proof of this accusation but if it had been the men, I think he would have gone.

I don't think what the other royals did is relevant, and I don't think that Will's status as a future king is relevant (why didn't Charles or Camilla go?). However, Will's position as president of the Football Association is. He should have attended in that capacity. On the other hand, he's really in a no-win situation -- flying across the planet for a two- or three-day trip is (IMO) wasteful. To me -- someone who cares deeply about the environment and passionately hates soccer -- those are the worse optics.

Will has many ways to make it up to the team that don't involve increasing his carbon footprint -- invite them to the palace for a celebration, endow scholarships, etc. Here's hoping he does.