As distraction tactics go, Prince William popping up as a surprise guest on Travis Kelce’s podcast on his wedding day — ”America’s royal wedding” — was some fancy footwork. And certainly, the Prince of Wales is one of the few grooms on earth who can understand what it feels like to have the world waiting with bated breath for any small detail about your big day.
There was a notable friendliness between Kelce, who co-hosts the hit podcast “New Heights” with his brother Jason, and Prince William. In fact, the Kansas City Chiefs tight end and Taylor Swift’s now husband apparently invited the royal on the show when they saw each other “not too long ago.” That seems like it’s a little more recent than two years ago, when they met backstage at Swift’s Eras tour in London.
Here’s what we learned from Prince William’s guest appearance on “New Heights.”
1. Prince William is campaigning for a World Cup in England
Beyond moral support, of course, there’s another reason why Prince William and his team might be talking to a few American athletes: As head of the Football Association in England, it’s his job to boost the sport at home and abroad. You may have heard there’s a little soccer tournament going on at the minute? If England makes it to the final, Prince William promised, he’d be there in the audience — and he would use his royal influence to get Kelce released pre-season training to come along. “Tell me who I need to write to,” he joked. “We’ll get you out.”
When it comes to soccer — or football, as the prince insisted on calling it in a running joke — the future king’s passion for the game is clear. He spoke at length about intricacies of the game, from the pros and cons of VAR, how the rules of the game need to be updated to reflect the growing popularity of the women’s game, and the intricacies of “professional fouls,” where you foul another player on purpose. He also said that he’d love to see a World Cup hosted in England, and it’s something he’s actively campaigning for.
“My weekend goes from the best weekend in the world if we win, or frankly I don’t want to see anyone on Monday morning if we don’t,” the ardent Aston Villa supporter told the brothers, adding that watching sport is a huge, positive part of his life.
“It’s a way to let out some steam. When you stop playing sport, you pine for it,” he said. “That camaraderie, you miss it. For me, sport has been that bit that has filled a hole in my life since I haven’t been able to play.”
3. Prince William praised Travis Kelce for his Eras tour experience
On the night they met, Kelce also had another thing to be nervous about: He was taking the stage as a backup dancer for his then-girlfriend, now-wife, Swift. Prince William, choosing between two moments, called it one of the most iconic things to ever happen at Wembley Stadium. “I think you should do it again,” he added.
“If Tay signs up for a tour, I’ll do it,” Kelce replied.
When asked if he learned to love the sport from his father, Prince William laughed. “He hates football,” he said. “My family haven’t got a particularly long history with football.” Instead, he was taken to a game by family friends as a child and caught the bug from there.
And the worse his chosen team did, he adds, the more he loved it. “Weirdly, I got into football more than ever when we got relegated,” he said, referring to the practice of demoting low-performing teams into another league. ”I suddenly really enjoyed the battle to get back.”
In fact, as someone born into hereditary privilege, he was surprisingly enthusiastic about the democracy and upward mobility you find within that system. “The idea that any club can potentially get to the top is there.”
5. He got in a nod to the special relationship
Soft diplomacy never sleeps, and Prince William was on royal form when asked how he felt about America’s 250th birthday this past weekend.
“Are you surprised we made it?” Jason joked, to which the future king replied: “There were times…”
The man who has entertained President Trump on a State Visit, however, quickly added: “I like to think the U.K. and the U.S. have been together for those 250 years. It’s a good brotherhood.”
