Prince George has travelled to France with his father Prince William to cheer on Wales in their quarter-final clash against Argentina in the Rugby World Cup.
The young royal joined the Prince of Wales – who is the patron of Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) – at the Stade de Marseille on Saturday (14 October). It marked the first time that George, 10, has watched an international rugby fixture in person overseas.
Wales are taking on Argentina in the first quarter-final of this year’s World Cup, with the winner competing against Ireland or New Zealand in the Rugby World Cup 2023 semi-finals.
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While his mother Kate Middleton supports the England rugby side as the patron of the Rugby Football Union, George made his loyalties clear as he cheered on Wales on Saturday.
The prince was a mini-me of his father, with both wearing matching navy suits and red ties – the latter seemingly a patriotic nod to the Welsh side.
In February last year, George stood between his parents as they watched England play Wales in the Six Nations, but was undecided on who to support.
Father and son attended the rugby together
(PA)
Quizzed at Twickenham on who he would pick, the young royal shrugged his shoulders and smiled at William, who laughed and said: “It’s become quite the thing in the house.” William then pointed at Kate, adding: “She is quite into it. I’m trying to stay out of it.”
George, who is gearing up for school entrance exams this autumn, plays rugby at school. He arrived at Saturday’s game with his father, who last month travelled to Bordeaux to watch Wales defeat Fiji 32-26 in their opening game of the pool fixtures.
Middleton, meanwhile, watched England beat Argentina in Marseille in their opening game of the tournament, and is set to travel to watch England’s quarter-final match against Fiji at the same venue on Sunday.
Wales finished on the top of their pool, progressing undefeated including a dominant 40-6 win over Australia.
William, who is also patron of the Football Association, was criticised in August for deciding not to attend the historic Women’s World Cup final when England battled Spain in Sydney.
In response, the royal shared a video apologising for not attending along with Princess Charlotte. However, this earnt him further criticism after some Lionesses fans claimed that the Prince included his daughter as a way to ward off further criticism.
Some critics claimed that William not including his sons George and Louis in the video and only Charlotte was an example of how an early “gender gap” in sport can begin.
Additional reporting by Press Association
