Prince William shared his thoughts on all things soccer (or football) during a surprise appearance on the New Heights podcast on Friday, which aired just hours before one of its hosts — Travis Kelce — is set to marry Taylor Swift in New York City.
Kansas City Chiefs star Travis co-hosts the podcast with his brother, Jason Kelce, a retired NFL player, who introduced William to their listeners as a “six-foot-three prince from London, England.”
Jason went on to list William’s many titles. “That’s right, the president of the English Football Association, the vice-royal patron of the Welsh Rugby Union, the Duke of Cambridge, the Duke of Cornwall, the Lord of the Isles, Prince and Great Steward of Scotland, Earl of Chester and the Prince of Wales… please welcome His Royal Highness, Prince William.”
Travis went on to ask the prince what he thought the “biggest shock” would be for English fans traveling to the States to watch the Fifa World Cup, which is co-hosted this year by the U.S., Canada and Mexico.
“Is it the light beer?” Travis joked.
“Yeah, the beer definitely is going to taste different,” William agreed, adding, “You haven’t met your match till you’ve seen a lot of beer drinkers from the U.K.”
He continued: “I think the scale of your stadiums, I think the size of them is really going to be quite a shock for a lot of fans.
“We really know our football, so to see stadiums that are bigger and kind of an amazing atmosphere that we can also emulate here, that’s quite a big deal.”
The future king previously joked about receiving an invitation to Swift and Kelce’s wedding during an appearance on Heart Radio’s breakfast show in May. When asked, he initially said “no comment” and laughed. William added: “That feels like a showbiz excuse, but it’s not. I’m hoping, and I’m sure there might be an invitation around, but we’ll see.”
Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 day
New subscribers only. £9.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled.
ADVERTISEMENT. If you sign up to this service we will earn commission. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.
Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 day
New subscribers only. £9.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled.
ADVERTISEMENT. If you sign up to this service we will earn commission. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.
The prince has a personal connection with Swift, having taken his two eldest children, George and Charlotte, to her Eras Tour concert in London last year, where he introduced them to the singer backstage.
He also famously joined Swift and rock star Jon Bon Jovi on stage for an impromptu rendition of Bon Jovi’s “Livin’ On A Prayer” in 2013 at a charity event held at Kensington Palace in aid of the homeless charity Centrepoint.