The Princess of Wales was seen beaming today as she cheered on England’s Red Roses from the stands at the Brighton & Hove Albion Stadium.
Kate, 43, is attending the women’s team’s match against Australia in her role as Patron of the Rugby Football Union, shortly after her husband Prince William watched Wales narrowly lose to Fiji at Sandy Park in Exeter more than 200 miles away earlier this afternoon.
The royal mother-of-three looked effortlessly stunning in a casual ensemble and once again showed off her newly-dyed blonde tresses, which glinted in the sunlight.
The princess has caused a storm in recent weeks with her new look – thought in part to be the result of spending more time in the sun this summer, including a yacht trip around the Greek islands with her family.
This week, she marked a return to royal engagements following the summer break as she visited the Natural History Museum with William – again displaying her ‘bronde’ hairstyle.
Today, she appeared in bright spirits once more as she took to the stands to cheer on the team in what will make for a nail-biting match.
The game marks the final of the group stage of the Women’s Rugby World Cup, with England currently sitting at the top of the leaderboard, and Australia currently in second place.
England, who are ranked the number one side in the world, shocked the US with a 69-7 win in the first round before another strong performance to win 92-3 against Samoa last weekend.
The Princess of Wales looked jubilant today as she cheered on England’s Red Roses from the stands at the Brighton & Hove Albion Stadium
The princess was seen cheering from the stands she watched England take on Australia
Kate, 43, is attending the women’s team’s match against Australia in her role as Patron of the Rugby Football Union
They are one of the favourites to win the entire tournament, alongside current world cup holders New Zealand, and Canada.
The couple have both shared personal messages to their respective teams on social media in recent weeks.
Posting in Welsh, then in English, William wrote: ‘Good luck to Wales Women as they kick off their Rugby World Cup campaign against Scotland today! Pob lwc, Cymru – ewch amdani! W.’
While Kate’s message read: ‘Wishing the Red Roses the very best as they kick off their Women’s Rugby World Cup campaign tonight.
‘I look forward to cheering you on and seeing the team rise to the challenge on home soil! C.’
Kate took over the role with the RFU from her brother-in-law Prince Harry in 2022, who was forced to give up the patronage as part of the Megxit agreement.
The Princess of Wales, who grew up watching rugby with her family, is known as one of the sportiest members of the Royal Family, and has gamely taken on her husband in everything from dragon boating to wind buggy racing at royal engagements.
She has played tennis and hockey from a young age and is already royal patron of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club and is a frequent visitor to the Wimbledon Championships.
While her love and passion for hockey has been well publicised, less well known is her family’s love of rugby.
The game marks the final of the group stage of the Women’s Rugby World Cup
Kate was all smiles at the kick-off, with England currently sitting at the top of the leaderboard, and Australia in second place
Kate took over the role with the RFU from her brother-in-law Prince Harry in 2022
The Princess of Wales grew up watching rugby with her family and is known as one of the sportiest members of the Royal Family
The royal mother-of-three looked effortlessly stunning in a casual ensemble and once again showed off her newly-dyed blonde tresses
Kate, 43, is attending the women’s team’s match against Australia in her role as Patron of the Rugby Football Union
Prince William was spotted in the stands chatting with Alan Gilpin (right), CEO of World Rugby, before the teams were led out at the Sandy Park stadium in Exeter
Her sister, Pippa, wrote in Vanity Fair magazine in 2014: ‘Rugby was a big thing for our family, we’d plan our weekends around the big matches.’
In the Daily Mail’s Palace Confidential podcast, Jo Elvin joked that the Wales family ‘may need a referee in house’ for the game – which forms part of the Six Nations Championship.
It’s unclear whether the royal children – Prince George, 11, Princess Charlotte, nine, and Prince Louis, six – are also split on which team they support: Wales for William, or England for Kate.
In fact, on Mike Tindall‘s podcast The Good, The Bad and The Rugby, Prince William did joke that the question of which team the children support has become ‘quite the thing’ at home.
He said: ‘It’s become quite the thing in the house. [Catherine] is quite into it. I’m trying to stay out of it.’
Today, William was spotted in the stands chatting with Alan Gilpin, CEO of World Rugby, before the teams were led out at the Sandy Park stadium in Exeter.
Wales lined up against Fiji this afternoon in the final round of the group stages of the tournament, which is being hosted by England.
However, they narrowly lost the match 25 points to Fiji’s 28, meaning they are out of the tournament.
The couple have both shared personal messages to their respective teams on social media in recent weeks
Regardless of today’s result in Exeter, Wales’ women will not be progressing to the quarter finals.
This didn’t appear to dampen William’s spirits however, with him seen smiling and laughing with other attendees in the stands before the national anthems.
And perhaps encouraged by the monarch’s show of support, Wales shot off the mark to become first scorers as they quickly earned a try.
The couple’s decision to attend their respective games comes amid a tricky time for the royal family after the sad announcement that the Duchess of Kent died this week at the age of 92.
The Prince and Princess of Wales yesterday shared a loving tribute to the Duchess of Kent, after the news was announced around Friday lunchtime.
William and Kate said the Duchess – who became the oldest living member of the Royal Family when Queen Elizabeth II died in 2022 – would be ‘much missed’.
The future king and queen described how she had ‘worked tirelessly’ in her life to help others.
The Duchess died at Kensington Palace on Thursday night, surrounded by members of her family. She is survived by Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, and their three children.
The Prince and Princess of Wales have divided loyalties this weekend, with William set to support Wales and Kate England (pictured at the Natural History Museum earlier this week)
The Princess of Wales will attend today’s England vs Australia game (Pictured: England’s women’s team in training on Friday)
In a statement signed ‘W & C’, the Prince and Princess of Wales said: ‘Our thoughts today are with The Duke of Kent and his family, particularly George, Helen and Nicholas.
‘The Duchess worked tirelessly to help others and supported many causes, including through her love of music. She will be a much missed member of the family’.
A spokesman for Prince Harry said he had sent his condolences privately to the Kent family.
Earlier this week, the Prince and Princess of Wales visited the Natural History Museum in London as they returned to duties after their summer break.
Kate, who studied art history at university and has been patron of the attraction since 2013, was seen with her newly blonde locks on display after spending a summer in the sun.
The Prince of Wales also showed a hint of tan during their day out in the capital following their traditional break, which was this year said to include a trip on their superyacht to Kefalonia, sailing around the Greek islands.
Kate, who has apparently dyed her brunette locks a few shades lighter, looked stylish in a fitted tweed ‘Hacket’ blazer from Ralph Lauren, paired with a white Boyfriend Shirt from sustainable British brand With Nothing Underneath, smart dark green tailored trousers and £199 tassel loafers from Pretty Ballerinas.
Alongside gentle waves in her hair, the princess opted for a natural sweep of make-up and added her £495 alphabet necklace from Daniella Draper – which features the initials of her three children, George, Charlotte and Louis – as well as Princess Diana‘s sapphire engagement ring and £850 Kiki McDonough pear drop earrings.
They dodged downpours as they kicked off their own ‘autumn term’ and visited the site’s newly transformed gardens, meeting children and young people taking part in learning programmes.
As they arrived at the venue, the supportive Prince was seen placing a hand on his wife’s back, making for a sweet display of affection.
The princess appeared firmly in her element as she laughed with school pupils as it began to pour with rain during their time in the gardens – even sweetly helping one child to shelter under her umbrella.
