Prince William makes a solo appearance at a soccer game in Monaco following Kate Middleton’s remission news

On January 21, Prince William achieved a long-held desire by seeing his favorite soccer team play abroad.

The Prince of Wales, 42, traveled to Monaco on the south coast of France on Tuesday to witness his beloved Aston Villa compete in the UEFA Champions League against AS Monaco. His lone participation at the game follows his wife Kate Middleton’s announcement on January 14 that she is in “remission” from cancer.

William has informed pals that he wants to support the squad as they make a rare appearance in the elite European Cup tournament.

He was accompanied for his lads night away by Thomas van Straubenzee, one of Princess Charlotte’s godfathers, and Nicholas van Cutsem, whom William has known for most of his childhood.

Villa lost 1-0 despite his and his friends’ passionate support for the team.

William’s passion for Aston Villa and this year share a symmetry: he was born in 1982, when Villa last won the European Cup. This year, as they participate for the first time in decades, he has seen them a handful of times.

The prince has previously stated that his birthdate and Villa’s success were among the reasons friends advised he support the side.

“I was born in ’82, and my friends were desperately trying to get me to support Villa, as you can imagine—and it worked,” William told That Peter Crouch Podcast in 2020.

“They told me about the club’s history and how important it was—and they won the European Cup [in 1982].” It sort of went from there. I’m not sure what it was. I felt a stronger connection with the club than I did with some of the others.

William also stated that Villa appealed to him as a team to support him since he did not want to support an apparent pick. “I really didn’t want to support Manchester United or Chelsea like everyone else at school. “I liked the idea of Villa having a real history,” he told broadcaster Peter Crouch.

William surprised Villa supporters at a small bar in Birmingham (the Premier League team’s home city) on January 15 before their 1-0 victory over Everton.

The prince scheduled a fan meetup to coincide with his stay in Birmingham, where he attended the College of Paramedics’ inaugural Emergency and Critical Care Conference and treated them to a round of drinks at Wetherspoons before the game.

He traveled to Monaco on Tuesday after visiting one of his homelessness charities, Centrepoint, in the morning. He has been a patron of Centrepoint for the past 20 years, following in the footsteps of his late mother, Princess Diana.

William’s next royal visit will be to Liverpool on January 23, where he will spend the day.