Prince William was photographed today enjoying sweet moments with his eldest child, Prince George, as the pair watched Aston Villa’s game against Nottingham Forest.
And the young royal, nine, proved he was a chip off the old block as he was seen making the same gestures as his father during the match at Villa Park.
At one point, the Prince of Wales, 40, was caught screaming with his hands over his ears. Sure enough, his son did the same gesture.
In another tense moment, the heir to the throne held his hands to his mouth as he stared intently. Again George made a similar gesture, looking straight ahead with his hands next to his mouth.
In another twist, which made George look even more like his dad’s mini-me, the pair wore similar outfits for the look, both wearing light blue shirts topped with navy sweaters.
Father and son: Prince William attended Aston Villa’s game against Nottingham Forest today (pictured, right) with his son Prince George (pictured, left)
At halftime the score was zero-zero, indicating a quiet start. However, the animated expressions shared by the two princes proved that the game had been anything but boring thus far.
Father of three Prince William has been a longtime fan of Aston Villa and regularly attends matches and other events.
He was the football club’s guest of honor when the ribbon was cut at the new £6 million facility two years ago.
One of the many matches he has attended was the club’s victorious 2019 play-off final against Derby County at Wembley.
And his interest in football doesn’t end there: the royal is president of the Football Association (FA), a role he took over from his uncle, the Duke of York, in 2006.
Prince William has taken a keen interest in all aspects of the game, including his support for the men’s and women’s national teams.
During an interview with the BBC in 2015, Prince William explained why he is an Aston Villa fan: ‘A long time ago at school I got into football big time.
“I was looking for clubs. All my friends at school were either Man United fans or Chelsea fans and I didn’t want to follow the regular teams.
Mini me: The Princes (pictured), who are both Aston Villa supporters, made similar expressions during some points of the game
Like father, like son: At another point during what appeared to be a tense game, the royals were snapped with their hands in the air screaming
Dramatic: At another point during the game, William and George looked horrified as they watched the action
“I wanted to have a team that was more mid-table and could give me more emotional roller coaster moments.
Aston Villas has always had a great history. I have friends of mine who support Aston Villa and one of the first FA Cup matches I went to was Bolton v Aston Villa in 2000.
Unfortunately, Villa lost to Chelsea. It was fantastic, I sat with all the fans wearing my red beanie, and I sat with all the Brummie fans and had a great time.
“It was the atmosphere, the camaraderie and I really felt there was something I could connect with.”
The Royals looked a bit calmer before kick-off when they were caught in the stands at Villa Park (pictured with Aston Villa chief Christian Purslow)
Prince William seemed much more relaxed before the game started, smiling, applauding and chatting
Prince George is also said to be an “enthusiastic football fan” and has been seen with his parents at games in England and Aston Villa.
George’s love of football is no secret, the royal family celebrates birthdays with sports-themed parties at Kensington Palace and William says he hopes his eldest son will one day be Villa’s ‘top goalscorer’.
The Prince’s love of the beautiful game was evident when he attended the Euro 2021 final at Wembley in June 2021, where England faced Italy.
After joining his parents for the national anthem, George threw his arms out and shouted in sheer joy as Luke Shaw propelled England to an early lead over Italy in the opening minutes.
But the young royal was later to be comforted when his team lost to the Azzurri on penalties after being outplayed by Roberto Mancini’s men in the second half.