Prince William's Royal Night Out

Prince William visited Germany on Thursday to attend a high-profile soccer match on the evening before his 42nd birthday.

The prince was photographed alongside European royalty at the UEFA Euro 2024 tournament group stage match between England and Denmark. He attended in his capacity as president of the Football Association in Britain, a role he was given by Queen Elizabeth II in 2006.

The event marked William's first overseas visit since Princess Kate made her return to public life on Saturday, after a six-month absence from royal duties while undergoing treatment for cancer.

The princess joined her husband and children at the Trooping the Colour celebrations marking King Charles III's official birthday in London on June 15. In a statement released a day earlier, Kate said she hoped to be able to attend more events over the summer and to start working from home when her health allows.

A Kensington Palace spokesperson said at the time that William was "pleased to see the princess starting to engage with the work and projects that are important to her."

At the Frankfurt Arena on Thursday evening, William joined a large number of England fans for their group stage game, but he was not the only royal in the crowd.

The prince was seated next to Denmark's new monarch, King Frederik X, who acceded to the throne in January after his mother Queen Margrethe II announced her shock abdication.

William and Frederik have known each other for a number of years and Princess Kate has been photographed with the king's wife, Queen Mary, on several occasions.

The queen did not accompany her husband to the match. Instead the couple's daughter, Princess Josephine, was present and was photographed shaking hands with William before the match.

The Kensington Palace and Danish royal house's social media accounts shared a new photograph of the royals together ahead of the match with the caption "May the best team win."

In the end, neither national team secured victory, with the match ending in a 1-1 draw.

William not only met European royalty at the game but also pop royalty, in the form of former One Direction band member Louis Tomlinson.

Footage of the prince and the singer chatting behind the scenes at the stadium has gone viral online. It is not the first time the two have met. The pair were photographed together at the Royal Variety charity performance in 2014 and 2017.

In 2018 when William and Kate named their youngest son Louis, Tomlinson posted a lighthearted social media message dedicated to the prince, including the line: "Young Louis welcome to the world. I'll take you under my wing lad."

James Crawford-Smith is Newsweek's royal reporter, based in London. You can find him on X, formerly Twitter, at @jrcrawfordsmith and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page.

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