Kate Middleton will take over the board of the English Rugby Union, facing her husband Prince William who is the patron of the Welsh rugby league.
Last year, Buckingham Palace had informed the decision to withdraw the patronage of Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle, following their decision to leave their duties as part of the Royal Family, returning the patronages to the monarch.
Kate Middleton is the first to replace one of Prince Harry’s patronages
Queen Elizabeth had remained secretive about what she would do with the patronages, and the first royal to be elected was the Duchess of Cambridge as the patron saint of the Rugby Football Union, which was previously under the Duke of Sussex from 2016 until its revocation in 2021. which was one of his last public appearances in his duties as royalty.
Middleton will take over the men’s rugby league in England, and that will contribute to the Six Nations Rugby championship that will take place next week. This is reported by Daily Mail, since an official statement is not yet made by the Royal Family, but it is expected that within a few days the board of trustees will be made official.
Kate’s new board of trustees will pit her against her husband, Prince William, who has been the patron of the Rugby Football Union of Wales since 2016.
The Duchess is the royal patron saint of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club and is recognized as a tennis fan. However, although her taste for rugby has been lower profile, her sister had given an interview to Vanity Fair magazine in 2014, where she commented that rugby was a very important sport for her whole family “we planned our weekends around the big rugby matches”.
On February 26, the England team will compete against Wales at Twickenham, and William and Kate are expected to be present supporting their teams.