Prince William Plays Soccer Referee Following Big Day with Kate Middleton

Prince William is hitting the soccer field and taking on the role of referee.

On March 11, the Prince of Wales, 42, traveled to Willenhall, West Midlands to visit a referee training course at Sporting Khalsa FC. The Reflective and Representative campaign, organized by the Football Association, is working to recruit 1,000 people from Black, Asian and mixed heritage backgrounds into refereeing roles.

The Prince of Wales — who is the patron of the FA, soccer’s governing body in England — has a well-documented love of soccer. The royal is known to send personal messages about major news in the soccer world on the official social media accounts he shares with Kate Middleton, and he also seems to have passed down his passion for the Aston Villa team to his eldest son, Prince George, 11.

Prince William was enthusiastically welcomed by schoolchildren from Fibbersley Park Primary Academy, and he smiled as he gave out high fives — and even a few hugs.

He learned more about the training course, which kicked off in July 2023 and weaves theory and practical training to support people learning to officiate soccer matches. Participants will learn how to referee grassroots games efficiently in a program for individuals over age 14 who hope to referee mini football, 9v9 and 11v11 games.

The heir to the throne met with reps from the FA and Sporting Khalsa to discuss the importance of increasing opportunities in soccer for young people from diverse backgrounds and connect with trainers from the course to hear about their personal journeys.

Prince William then joined a lesson to learn more about the finesse necessary for refereeing and try his hand at various ref skills like whistle tones and flag signals. The Prince of Wales then put his new skills to the test by playing referee for a mini game.

Prince William became president of the FA in 2006, and transitioned into the patron position in July 2024, taking over a role previously held by his late grandmother, Queen Elizabeth. 

His visit to the referee training course falls the day after the Commonwealth Day Service of Celebration at Westminster Abbey in London, which was especially momentous as Princess Kate and King Charles attended for the first time in two years.

The Princess of Wales, 43, and the King, 76, were unable to attend the commemoration in March 2024 for health-related reasons. Kate had been recovering from a “planned abdominal surgery” that January before revealing on March 22 that she began chemotherapy treatment for cancer. (The royal has since shared in September that she completed chemotherapy and said on Jan. 14 that she is in remission.) 

King Charles also did not go to the annual service in 2024 as doctors advised him to postpone public-facing work after he began treatment for a cancer diagnosis announced in February 2024. On Monday, he led Queen Camilla, the Prince and Princess of Wales, Princess Anne, Prince Richard, the Duke of Gloucester and Birgitte, the Duchess of Gloucester as the contingent of working royals during his return to the Commonwealth Day Service.

Palace sources said in December that King Charles’ treatment for cancer would continue into the new year, “moving in a positive direction and as a managed condition.”

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The Commonwealth Day Service was the royal family’s first major event of the year, held to celebrate the network of 56 nations (most formerly under the British crown) which exists to enrich the lives of its 2.7 billion citizens. 

King Charles is the head of the Commonwealth itself, and the Monday service — where Prince William and Princess Kate snuck in a look of love — is a staple on the royal family’s annual calendar.