Prince William will travel to Berlin for England’s Euro 2024 final against Spain on Sunday – with Kate tipped to appear at Wimbledon on the same day.
The royal attended the Three Lions’ quarter-final victory over Switzerland last Saturday and will be in the stands for England’s first ever final on foreign soil.
Meanwhile back in the UK, Wimbledon officials remain ‘hopeful’ that the Princess of Wales may feel well enough to hand out their own trophies on Centre Court over the weekend.
Last weekend, the future king displayed a whole gamut of emotions as he roared in response to Bukayo Saka‘s skillful opening goal against the Swiss before placing his head in his hands as the referee blew the final whistle to confirm that the game was to be decided from 12 yards.
Once Liverpool’s Trent Alexander-Arnold sealed victory with an emphatic penalty kick, however, the Prince of Wales leapt from his seat and punched the air in a moment of unconfined joy.
Prince William celebrates England’s equaliser against Switzerland last Saturday. The royal will be in Berlin for Sunday’s final
The Princess of Wales pictured holding the winner’s trophy after the men’s singles final at the 2019 Wimbledon Championships. She is tipped to appear at this Sunday’s final
The Prince of Wales had his head in his hands after Swiss striker Breel Embolo put the Swiss ahead last Saturday
But he was jumping for joy after Bukayo Saka revived England’s Euros hopes with a stunning late goal
The royal previously described England’s 2-1 extra time win over Slovakia in the last 16 as an ’emotional rollercoaster’ but the Three Lions’ last two matches have arguably been even more tense with a last minute Ollie Watkins winner sending Gareth Southgate‘s men through to the final against the Netherlands.
England reached Sunday’s final in dramatic fashion after Watkins’s 90th minute strike secured the victory, with Harry Kane earlier cancelling out Xavi Simons’s first half opener.
It was the third successive knockout game at the tournament that the Three Lions have won following substantial drama.
Southgate’s squad will now attempt to go one step further than Euro 2020, when they also reached the final but lost to Italy on penalties at Wembley.
Nervous England fans suffered early heartbreak when Simons opened the scoring with a thunderbolt shortly after kick-off. But their agony turned into euphoria when Kane equalised from the spot in the 18th minute.
With the game heading to extra-time again, Watkins – who had only been on the pitch nine minutes – clinched a historic winner in the 90th minute, prompting England’s substitutes to run onto the pitch, as pints flew across pubs and fan zones at home.
Kane’s penalty was controversially awarded by VAR after he went down from a Denzel Dumfries challenge in the aftermath of blazing a strike over the crossbar. But the England captain was not going to complain – and made no mistake in dispatching the penalty into the corner.
In a much-improved England performance, the Three Lions then nearly doubled their lead as Phil Foden danced around several defenders in the box before rolling the ball under the keeper only to see his effort hooked off the line by Dumfries at the critical moment.
A last minute winner from Aston Villa striker Ollie Watkins (pictured) secured a 2-1 win over the Netherlands and a first ever final on foreign soil
Watkins dramatically sent England into the final of the European Championship with a sensational strike
The substitute scored just minutes after coming onto the pitch, prompting England’s substitutes to flood onto the pitch
An emotional Gareth Southgate celebrates at the full-time whistle after leading England to another final
The heavily-involved Dumfries almost made amends for giving away a penalty minutes later as he crashed a header off the bar from a corner.
But an electric England pushed for another and Foden came inches away from doing so, curling a stunning effort against the woodwork himself, before the break.
In the second-half, England carried on from where they left as Saka drove to the byline and pulled the ball back, but had no support with him.
With 30 minutes remaining, the Netherlands came back into the game, seeing more of the ball as the semi-final became more even as England fans watched the game through their fingers.
Their pressure almost paid off as Virgil Van Dijk forced a smart save out of Pickford to keep the scores level in the 65th minute.
England fans were sent into raptures again with 11 minutes to go as Saka gave the Three Lions the lead, finishing off a brilliant team goal. But their cheers soon turned to despair as the offside flag ruled that Walker – who cut the ball back for Saka – was offside in the lead-up.
Moving into the final seven minutes, Marc Guehi brilliantly intervened to block Wout Weghorst from scoring at the other end.
And the memory of Saka’s goal being ruled out was all forgotten about when Cole Palmer played Ollie Watkins in, who swiveled his body and fired a strike into the bottom left corner with seconds to go to send England to Berlin.
Harry Kane celebrates after scoring a penalty against the Netherlands
In the previous round, Trent Alexander-Arnold scored the winning penalty to see England through to the semi-final
Prince William congratulates Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka after England’s stunning penalty win in the quarter final
The Prince also met with penalty hero Trent Alexander-Arnold after the match
Shortly after full-time, King Charles and Queen Camilla congratulated the team, with a statement. His Majesty said: ‘My wife and I join all our family in wishing you the warmest congratulations on reaching the final of the U.E.F.A. European Championship – and in sending our very best wishes for Sunday’s match.
‘If I may encourage you to secure victory before the need for any last minute wonder-goals or another penalties drama, I am sure the stresses on the nation’s collective heart rate and blood pressure would be greatly alleviated! Good luck, England. Charles R.’
Prince William, the president of the FA and a lifelong Aston Villa fan, tweeted: ‘What a beauty, Ollie! Congratulations England! #EURO2024 Finalists. W.’
The Three Lions are now one step closer to ending the men’s team’s run without a major tournament trophy.
Prince William’s appearance last week came after he was spotted at England’s group stage game against Denmark on June 20 which ended in a 1-1 draw after an early goal scored by captain Harry Kane.
The Prince was incredibly animated throughout the Euros clash last month, including when he launched out of his seat and cheered after the opener in the 18th minute.
But by the end of the game, William – like most of the nation – had his hands on his face after a far from convincing performance saw England pegged back to a 1-1 draw thanks to a wonder strike from Danish midfielder Morten Hjulmand.
Despite the lacklustre performance, the prince showed his sportsmanship by shaking hands with Denmark’s King, Frederik X, at the full-time whistle – with both countries still on track to advance in the tournament.
The pair appeared to have a jokey exchange as Frederik X, who only acceded to the throne following his mother’s shock abdication in January, celebrated with a fist pump in front of William’s face when he left the stadium.
Long-time football fan William was photographed laughing with Frederik in the crowd and the pair were filmed having an enthusiastic conversation as they sat together on the same row.
William was wearing a suit and striped tie and Frederik an open-collar white shirt and blazer at the Frankfurt Arena in Germany.
The Prince of Wales celebrates an early Harry Kane goal against Denmark on June 20
The Prince of Wales, who made the trip to Frankfurt without the Princess of Wales despite her recent public appearance, was also spotted chatting to former Manchester United CEO and UEFA treasurer David Gill and FA CEO Mark Bullingham.
After the game, the future king spoke to the England squad at the Waldstadion, aiming to raise spirits immediately after the final whistle by telling Southgate’s side not to overreact to the frustrating display.
‘He was just trying to keep us all positive,’ disclosed England midfielder Adam Wharton.
‘He was saying it’s not the end of the world. We were thinking we’re still top of the group, we didn’t lose, we got a draw, we’ve just got to reflect on the game – to see how we can get better and look forward to the next game.
‘That’s all you can do in tournament football.’