Emmanuel Macron and Brigitte Macron’s state visit to the UK began today. Several days ago, Buckingham Palace released a lot of information about who will do what for the state visit, and we got to play one of my new favorite games, “How Many Events Are William and Kate Being Excluded From?” The royal reporters went on and on about the Prince and Princess of Wales having a “starring role” in the state visit, but really, they’re just doing a couple of hours of “work” today and that’s it. They’re not even confirmed to appear at the state dinner at Windsor Castle, and they’re certainly not hosting the Macrons for a private lunch or tea, nor are the Waleses being tasked with ferrying the Macrons to any events beyond the welcome ceremony. King Charles even had to ask the Gloucesters to host the Macrons at the Guildhall tomorrow:
Kate Middleton and Prince William have a busy week ahead. On July 8, French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife, Brigitte Macron, will travel to Windsor for a State Visit. The Prince and Princess of Wales will be assisted by two unexpected senior members of the Royal Family, who have been given a more prominent role while hosting the French visitors.
The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester “will accompany the French couple to a Guildhall banquet hosted by the Lord Mayor and City of London Corporation on the evening of Wednesday, July 9,” GB News reported. The Duke of Gloucester is Queen Elizabeth II’s cousin, making him perfectly placed to carry out official engagements on behalf of the Royal Family.
No disrespect to the Gloucesters, but this really doesn’t sound like Britain is rolling out the red carpet for the Macrons. Sophie and Edward couldn’t even be tasked with hosting duties? Yikes. So, obviously, I wondered why William and Kate weren’t planning on doing anything else for the state visit this week. And lo and behold, I got a partial answer – William plans to travel to Switzerland tomorrow… to watch football.
Prince William will leave the UK on Wednesday as Kensington Palace has confirmed the royal will travel to Switzerland in his role as Patron of the Football Association.
The Prince of Wales will attend the UEFA Women’s Euro 2025 group stage match between England and the Netherlands. The game will be played at the Letzigrund in Zurich.
The trip to Switzerland comes just one day after Princess Kate and Prince William will take centre stage in welcoming French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte when they arrive for their State Visit to the United Kingdom today. The royal couple will greet the French President and Mrs Macron at RAF Northolt on behalf of King Charles III.
I can’t believe I looked this up, but William actually skipped one of the group-stage matches already – the Lionesses lost to the French team over the weekend and William (the patron) wasn’t there. But he’s making a point to go to another group-stage match in the middle of a state visit? The Lionesses are also scheduled to play on Sunday, but that’s the Wimbledon men’s final. William skipped Wimbledon last year (because of football!), but I wonder if he’s planning to go this year.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.
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- Britain’s Prince William plays football, as he meets with members of Tiber Young People’s Steering Group, during a visit to Tiber in Liverpool, Britain, January 23, 2025.,Image: 956912553, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: *** NO UK USE FOR 48 HRS ***, Model Release: no, Credit line: Temilade Adelaja/Avalon/Avalon
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- WILLENHALL, ENGLAND – MARCH 11: Prince William, Prince of Wales joins a lesson and speaks with participants on the course to learn about the key skills involved in refereeing during an official visit to an FA Referee Training Course At Sporting Khalsa FC at Aspray Arena on March 11, 2025 in Willenhall, England. The Prince of Wales is patron of the Football Association, the visit to Khalsa FC is part of the FA’s Reflective and Representative campaign which aims to recruit 1,000 people from Black, Asian and mixed heritage backgrounds into refereeing roles.,Image: 974676336, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: *** NO UK USE FOR 48 HRS ***, Model Release: no, Credit line: Chris Jackson/Avalon
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- WILLENHALL, ENGLAND – MARCH 11: Prince William, Prince of Wales waves the linesman’s flag during a mini football game on official visit to an FA Referee Training Course At Sporting Khalsa FC at Aspray Arena on March 11, 2025 in Willenhall, England. The Prince of Wales is patron of the Football Association, the visit to Khalsa FC is part of the FA’s Reflective and Representative campaign which aims to recruit 1,000 people from Black, Asian and mixed heritage backgrounds into refereeing roles.,Image: 974676732, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: *** NO UK USE FOR 48 HRS ***, Model Release: no, Credit line: Chris Jackson/Avalon
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- WILLENHALL, ENGLAND – MARCH 11: Prince William, Prince of Wales blows the referee’s whistle during a mini football game on official visit to an FA Referee Training Course At Sporting Khalsa FC at Aspray Arena on March 11, 2025 in Willenhall, England. The Prince of Wales is patron of the Football Association, the visit to Khalsa FC is part of the FA’s Reflective and Representative campaign which aims to recruit 1,000 people from Black, Asian and mixed heritage backgrounds into refereeing roles.,Image: 974676743, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: *** NO UK USE FOR 48 HRS ***, Model Release: no, Credit line: Chris Jackson/Avalon
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- WILLENHALL, ENGLAND – MARCH 11: Prince William, Prince of Wales waves the linesman’s flag during a mini football game on official visit to an FA Referee Training Course At Sporting Khalsa FC at Aspray Arena on March 11, 2025 in Willenhall, England. The Prince of Wales is patron of the Football Association, the visit to Khalsa FC is part of the FA’s Reflective and Representative campaign which aims to recruit 1,000 people from Black, Asian and mixed heritage backgrounds into refereeing roles.,Image: 974676906, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: *** NO UK USE FOR 48 HRS ***, Model Release: no, Credit line: Chris Jackson/Avalon
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- The Prince of Wales throws a football as he attends a community event hosted by NFL Foundation UK in London. The organisation focuses on tackling challenges faced by young people in some of the most deprived communities across the UK, through the provision of NFL Flag, a fast paced, inclusive and easy to access American Football format. Picture date: Tuesday October 15, 2024. Featuring: William, Prince of Wales Where: London, United Kingdom When: 15 Oct 2024 Credit: PA Images/INSTARimages **NORTH AMERICA RIGHTS ONLY**
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- Prince William and Prince George watch Aston Villa play against Paris-Saint Germain in the UEFA Champions League at Parc des Princes stadium in Paris Featuring: Prince William, Prince George Where: Paris, France When: 09 Apr 2025 Credit: Starface Photo/Cover Images **UK AND USA RIGHTS ONLY**
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- The Prince and Princess of Wales leave Buckingham Palace, central London, on day one of the President of South Korea Yoon Suk Yeol’s state visit to the UK. Featuring: Catherine, Princess of Wales and William, Prince of Wales Where: London, United Kingdom When: 21 Nov 2023 Credit: PA Images/INSTARimages **NORTH AMERICA RIGHTS ONLY**
Typical behavior of a global statesman?
Yes, football matches are where deals are made over foreign policy these days. 😏
How is it that when a major ally and his wife make a State visit to your country, it’s okay for the heir to the throne makes a day trip outside the country simply to watch a football game? I understand that Willnot is the patron but he has never willingly attended a women’s game before! Not to mention the fact that Mr. Earthshit will definitely be taking a private jet to wherever for a few hours. The optics of this is terrible and so tone deaf from this lazy guy – and all supposedly under the guise of “work”!
Stop criticizing lil lazy willie. He says he is smarter than Harry and he is now pre-kinging in his own way, pre-king forging his own path. So football game and switzerland it is. This is free willie 2.0
A bad look if he leaves Charlotte home and takes only George.
I saw on twitter that he was taking Charlotte but I have no idea if it is true or not. I immediately thought that he has been reading CB because we always call him out on it.
Wait! Didn’t Peg miss an important lioness game last year because he was on vacation? So this year he is making a point to go to Switzerland to catch a game? Sounds like he wants nothing more to do with this state visit and is conveniently using his I’m the Patron so I must go to the game in Switzerland to get out of “work”. Such a great global statesman (not).
He missed them playing in the World Cup final. Queen Letizia went with her daughter… no British royals went. It was noticed ..but then ‘they are only women’… is probably what he says..
Think he got so much bad press after the last tournament (and a demotion at the FA!)
He’s making sure to go in case they don’t make it past the group stage, and he gets criticised for not supporting them.
Maybe he should give up the football to focus on his actual job?? One day it might be him hosting state visits, he can’t just opt out for a sports match #parttimeprince.
They’ll let him opt out. A part time prince who had to ‘attend a match, SO IMPORTANT’ is a better look than one that they have show up and throws a tantrum. I’m just waiting for the day he lets loose in public.
It is so strange that it’s not W and K who accompany them to that dinner. Sophie must have been jumping over fences running to KC for the chance. The BBC has been harping on how significant this visit is and that KC is not just a figurehead. They could not come up with any explanation why he is anything more, admitting that Nr 10 choreographs everything.
The water that is carried for them by the BM will never cease to amaze me. I get that football is one of his patronages, but this is during a state visit. Even with it being an official patronage, it comes off as skipping work to have fun. And if they don’t do any other major events, other than holding a sign at arrivals with a name like they did today, it’s such a bad look.
I really wonder what his reign will look like because he’s obviously not invested, and clearly no one believes he has the ability to be successful on his own. So is this just groundwork for everyone to forget he’s actually King at some point and not expect to see him at the more ” traditional” events that actually require diplomacy, charisma, and intelligence?
Right? “holding a sign at arrivals with a name” is…..a starring role? How can the bar be set so low for those two…
and where on earth are Sophie and Edward these days, they were MIA in Tartan Disneyland last week too!
it also looks bad because he could attend other games. like if this was the semi-final or the finals and he was going – I think that would be understandable. but its the group stage. he could have gone to the game last weekend against France. he could go to the game on Sunday – that SHOULD take precedence over Wimbledon for him because he’s not patron of wimbledon or anything like that.
but instead he’s going to the game that’s right in the middle of the state visit?
It’s almost as though HE has also been benched from the key events of the state visit, and this is his way of thumbing his nose at his father.
The Royal Family and their fans don’t know what it’s really like to be busy. Plus how is William taking centre stage at the state visit if he’s going to be in Zurich?
He greeted them at the airport, duh. he’s already done his part for the state visit but yes what a starring role lol.
Will doesn’t like to boast but last year he was one of ten ( yes ten) ushers at the Duke of Westminster’s wedding, woohoo 🙌🙌!
After 10+ years a royal, Kate should be able to host the Macron’s solo or at least accompany the Gloucesters to the guild hall event. The bill of goods that the public was sold when WandK wed, that Kate was the most educated, spent 8 years around the royals, knew exactly what to expect, was all complete nonsense. Too bad the public can’t sue for being sold a lemon.
I dont know where she is this week, but Anne could absolutely host them at an event like that solo – and indeed would have to bc her husbands have never been working royals.
(I wonder if she’s traveling bc I haven’t seen her on the list for any of the events.)
Very true but Anne does seem to enjoy royal “work”, WandK not so much.
I think the event she did with Dr Jill Biden when the Bidens were visiting may be her first and last chance she gets.
I bet Willy will drag along Charlotte for some good press.
He never bothered taking her before. He did not let her go with him and George or taken her anywhere solo. He should have been taking her along because he cares about her.
So he’ll go to Switzerland but not Australia. Got it.
King William will make his subjects soo proud! 🙄
William always looks awkward to me. I don’t know why? Maybe he has imposter syndrome and it is reflected in how uncomfortable or self conscious he feels when he is in public. 🤷🏽♀️
Maybe that’s why he is so angry about Harry not being his wingman. Harry commands a presence or charisma that William was able to pull from or hide behind.
You know there was a period not long after WandK married where they both seemed somewhat “comfortable” in public and Kate actually made several speeches but something went sideways between the birth of Charlotte and the birth of Louis. An affair perhaps, a mental health crisis, I don’t know but something caused them both to regress and they’ve never quite recovered that “comfort” around each other or others.
Honestly I think because back in 2014 / 2015 there were more ” working” royals. You had Queen Elizabeth, Prince Philip, Charles, Camilla, Harry, Anne, Andrew, Edward, Sophie, the Gloucester’s, the Kent’s, and maybe Prince Michael back then? You would think that would let them hide in the crowd, but I think it actually made it more apparent if they weren’t doing stuff.
Because the coverage that I vaguely remember from back then was basically calling them out for being lazier than people decades older than them. Now with less people and them being so close to the top themselves there’s really nothing to force them to work. They’ve gotten away with being so lazy for so long that now they can basically do whatever they want, with very minimal pushback unless Charles comes down on them really hard about something specific. That means that they never actually developed themselves, and now they have no impetus to do so.
I sometimes wonder if Kate struggled with PPD after either George or Charlotte and it was never properly treated. Also if at some point in that time period she found out about the Rose affair it could have sent her spiraling.
Or, it may be as simple as once they had kids, they had what they thought was an ironclad excuse for not working. And it worked for a while and they succeeded in setting the bar so low that if Kate were to break 150 events in year she would be deemed “hardworking.”
but now something seems to have switched – maybe as the kids are older the constant use of them as shields from working and criticism is getting old, maybe as Prince/ss of Wales people think they should be working more, IDK. But it feels like the press is very gradually circling back to that earlier criticism re: their work ethic.
Is the prince of Wales only going to the England matches again?
Wonder if Starmer will complain that the optics of the heir going to a football game over being present during a state visit isn’t helping the FCO achieve its goals.
I hope the French consider this as a major snub. Perhaps it is. After all Paris Match revealed their skiing holidays instead of working.
Going to be a wild time when Willy becomes king.
“I don’t want to go!”
“You must sir, you are the head of state!”
“I can do whatever I want!”
@Blogger neither W nor K seem capable, mature, responsible and dependable. Trump ‘s visit is going to be a big test for them as a couple because he’s thin skinned and will expect them to dance attention on him.
I’m sure they’ll dance given Willy and Trump have already flattered each other. Not sure how it will work out with Trump and the Rottweiler. Trump knew Diana, and well, she’s way below Diana’s star power.
Lazy will be glad she’ll miss out on Trump but maybe she’ll have to chit-chat next to Vance (if he attends)? But Vance likes his women meek and Lazy is the royal Stepford wife.
So William could have gone to see the Lionesses in Switzerland on Saturday, but instead he chooses to go in the middle of a state visit? WTF?
Is William’s rule about not working weekends that hard and fast? Will that continue when he’s king? And what is Charles thinking, or does Charles not want them squiring the Macrons to events anyway?
Its a really bad look if he refuses to work weekends and includes attending a soccer game as “work.” Yes I know it counts bc he’s the patron of the FA – but its not like he’s going down into the coal mines. he can attend a game on a weekend even if it interrupts his weekend or his summer vacation or whatever.
I cant tell if the laziness of these two is just getting harder to hide, or if the press just isn’t protecting them as much.
Becks, I think it’s both – the Waleses are getting more blatant in their refusal to do anything, and the press is exposing more.
Ever since Will got his own income he has become more blatant in his workshy ways. His father no longer holds the purse strings, which was a major tool of control.
Charles should be very worried that these two knuckleheads will be taking over for him sooner rather than later.
Why should Charles worry, there’s nothing he’ll be able to do about it. However if Charles had an ounce of self-awareness he’d be regretting caving in to William, regret not being more of a “father” and quit coddling his eldest and heir.
William is 1 heartbeat away from becoming sovereign and he runs off for a soccer game DURING a state visit. I think the FA would understand given his position. His foundness of soccer is probably why the Firm and the FO don’t give him and Kate big rolls in state visits. They are going to be jokes.
“The water that is carried for them by the BM will never cease to amaze me. ”
And at this point I can’t imagine whose interests it’s serving, to prop them up and cover for them like this.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/clyz5gnvdjrt?post=asset%3Aafe501b7-d3da-4307-9ddf-683b0f807f08#post
Very obsequious coverage of FK from the BBC news : Will is a big boy now who has met Macron several times recently!
I honestly wonder if they keep William away from the important diplomatic events because they don’t trust him not to stuff it up. He doesn’t seem the type to be capable of nuanced political conversations, for example, and I can definitely see him putting his foot in it and causing diplomatic embarrassment.
That said, surely they shouldn’t still be wheeling the Gloucesters out? The Duke of Gloucester is 80. He’s done his time.
“The Duke of Gloucester is Queen Elizabeth II’s cousin, making him perfectly placed to carry out official engagements on behalf of the Royal Family.”
I laughed at this … he’s “perfectly placed” to carry out this engagement, but apparently the heir is not.
I know it’s because the 80 year old is a safe pair of hands and the heir is an twerp who can’t be trusted!
Sounds as if William knows he should have turned up for the Women’s world cup final and is trying to not get it so terribly wrong again. As for the Gloucesters, they really aren’t higher up enough for the escorting of a Head of State and his wife on a state visit. William is a disgrace to his role. Wonder if he is going to take Charlotte with him this time.
The Gloucesters often attend things at the Guildhall, I think there must be a reason they are given City of London events
How are they going to cope when KC, QCC, Anne and the Gloucesters have either gone to those happy hunting grounds or retired? If they are left with the unfab four, who is going to cover the annual 2000 plus royal engagements that they boast of when their accounts are published?
there’s going to be a lot of “phone calls” recorded to make up the gap……
My thoughts exactly. Is Kate still going to be flaking on events in five years’ time because “cancer you monsters”? Is Bulliam still going to be claiming credit for statesmanship while continuing to bail on state visits?
Agree this trip tomorrow makes zero sense when he could have gone last Saturday or next Sunday (does anybody think he wants to stand around at Wimbledon watching Kate soak up love?) Glad he’s finally acknowledging the women though, and hope he takes Charlotte.
So what’s going on?
– Charles doesn’t trust WanK to be good ambassadors
– Charles is mad about William constantly briefing that he’s a bad king with one foot in the grave
– Charles doesn’t want to be upstaged by another new dress and WanK theatrics at Guildhall
– Our boy Bulliam doesn’t do weekends, end of
I meant to say, the soccer would be to save face if Charles did disinvite him from Guildhall.
So proud of our French women, this game against England was insane. We weren’t favorite and still they gave everything.
William is definitely going to be bad luck and if England loose this game they are out of the competition. They should really tell him not to show up.