\n<\/p>\n
This weekend Prince William<\/strong> went on a trip to Monaco to see his favorite soccer team, Birmingham\u2019s Aston Villa, take on AS Monaco in a high-pressure match<\/a>. On Tuesday, the prince attended a UEFA Champions League game at Stade Louis II alongside his two friends, Thomas van Straubenzee<\/strong> and Nicholas van Cutsem.<\/strong> Though Aston Villa\u2019s season so far has been a dream come true for William\u2014a supporter of the team<\/a> since his teen years\u2014he looked dejected when the game ended with a win for Monaco, 1\u20130.<\/p>\n Van Straubanzee and van Cutsem are longtime friends of William\u2019s and were both guests at his 2011 wedding to Kate Middleton.<\/strong> Van Straubanzee is one of Princess Charlotte<\/strong>\u2019s godparents, while van Cutsem is a godparent to Prince Louis.<\/strong> William was last spotted at an Aston Villa match with van Straubenzee and van Cutsem last October, when the group of lads made an outing to watch the team take on Bayern Munich at their home stadium. In April 2024<\/a>, just weeks after Kate announced her cancer diagnosis<\/a>, William took his son, Prince George,<\/strong> to watch a match at Villa Park.<\/p>\n As of Wednesday, Aston Villa is in contention for a top four Premier League finish and have won seven of the last 12 Champions League matches. It\u2019s a strong showing for the team, and William is getting in on the enthusiasm. Last week, William made a stop at a Wetherspoons diner in Birmingham to meet with a group of Aston Villa supporters before they played Everton. According to the Daily Mail<\/a>,<\/em> William sipped a pint of Bulmers hard cider and bought a round of beers for the eight fans he spoke to. \u201cHe was fantastic. I was quite amazed about how engaged he was with the club, his interest. He’s not a fair weather fan. He really loves the club with a passion,\u201d one fan told the tabloid. \u201cYoung George is a Villa fan but he didn’t want all three to be Villa fans.\u201d<\/p>\n The prince\u2019s love for the less universally known team first became public when he was spotted wearing a claret and blue Aston Villa hat back in 1998. William\u2019s fondness for the team has its roots in a bit of historical coincidence. Aston Villa last won the Champions League title back in May 1982, about one month before William was born.<\/p>\n During a 2020 podcast appearance, William explained that when he was a teenager, his friends persuaded him to start supporting the team because of the coincidence. \u201cThey told me about the history of the club and how it mattered\u2014and they won the European Cup [in ’82],\u201d William said<\/a>. \u201cIt kind of went from there. I don\u2019t know what it was. I felt a real connection with the club, more than I felt watching some of the other ones.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n