Six Nations – Rugby sponsors Prince William and Kate Middleton in Wales v England

The Prince and Princess of Wales took part in England’s Six Nations match against Wales this afternoon in Cardiff.

Kate, 41, a sponsor of the Rugby Football Union (RFU) and the Rugby Football League (RFL), and Prince William, 40, a sponsor of the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) since 2016, appeared in high spirits at the get to the game

The famously competitive royal couple is in the stands to cheer on their respective teams in the Six Nations tie.

Kate, a mother of three, looked effortlessly chic in an upcycled red and white houndstooth coat by Catherine Walker that she first debuted in 2018 during a trip to Sweden. Looking equally patriotic, William sported a red scarf.

Kate took over the rugby roles of her brother-in-law Prince Harry, who used to enjoy cheering for England before he was forced to forgo sponsorship as part of the Megxit deal.

The Princess of Wales, who grew up watching rugby with her family, is known as one of the sportiest members of the Royal Family and has bravely stood up to her husband in everything from dragon boat rides to buggy races on royal engagements.

She has played tennis and hockey from a very young age and is already a Royal Patron of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club and is a frequent visitor to the Wimbledon Championships.

Less known is his love for rugby. Her sister, Pippa, wrote in Vanity Fair magazine in 2014: “Rugby was a big thing for our family, we planned our weekends around the big games.”

Meanwhile, Welsh players threatened to strike over the England match before an agreement was reached over a series of contract disputes with their Welsh rugby bosses.

“Hopefully we never end up in this situation again,” Wales captain Ken Owens said. “The most positive thing we can take from all this is how united the players have been and how much we have supported each other.

“Many of us veteran Welsh rugby players have experienced this before. It has definitely galvanized us and that has been shown in the unity of the actions that were taken.’

After a tumultuous period that must rank as one of Welsh rugby’s greatest crises, Owens and his team must now turn their attention to the action on the field.

Warren Gatland’s side were beaten by Ireland and Scotland in the first two rounds of the Six Nations and then the threat of attack completely overshadowed the build-up for England.

“We’re probably disappointed that it’s gotten to the point where it has, but as players we had to because there’s a lot of uncertainty in the game,” Owens said.

‘But he went to bed on Wednesday and what’s done is done. Now we have to focus on rugby.’

Wales wing Justin Tipuric missed Friday’s captain’s run session to manage his training load, but will still start against England.

“We need a win to put our pride back in the jersey after two defeats,” said Owens, revealing he agreed with his head coach Gatland that Wales’ past successes had plugged the cracks in rugby’s woes. earlier in the country.

‘It’s trying to end this saga on a positive note. We’ve had a lot of crises in Welsh rugby over the last 10 or 12 years at different points and it’s almost been the national team that has stepped in to cover them.

“If the national team weren’t winning, this probably would have come to a head much sooner.”