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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
National
Pol Allingham

Football-fan the Prince of Wales to present FA Cup trophy

Football-fan the Prince of Wales will present the FA Cup trophy to the winning team this weekend.

William will be at Wembley Stadium watching Crystal Palace take on Manchester City on Saturday afternoon.

Palace bagged their spot after beating William’s beloved Aston Villa 3-1 in the FA Cup semi-final.

The Prince, 42, has backed the Birmingham team since he was a child and has cheered them on at many of the recent Champions League games.

William has been a lifelong fan of Aston Villa (Rui Vieria/PA) (PA Archive)

He was photographed on his feet punching the air during a match that he took Prince George to in April.

The pair left disappointed as the result failed to secure Villa a Champions League semi-final place.

William fell in love with Villa after being taken to matches by family friends and has said he now posts anonymously on fan forums.

During an interview with the Sun newspaper in March, he said: “With the camaraderie among the fans and the chanting and the singing, I just felt like I belonged there.”

The Prince of Wales makes his way onto the pitch to meet the players before the Emirates FA Cup final at Wembley Stadium in 2023 (Adam Davy/PA) (PA Archive)

He added: “I like going on the forums, I can be on there for ages. I listen to what other fans have to say and give them my opinions. I get quite into it, definitely. It’s important to have that debate.”

He became the patron of the FA last summer after being its president for 18 years.

The Football Association’s patron was previously the late Queen Elizabeth II.

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