Monarchies and football, a story of shared passion

If anything manages to unite people around colors and a flag, it is football. National teams become symbols of their countries and unleash passions that European monarchies would like for them. Thus, with the beginning of the Euro Cup, we have been able to see how Federico from Denmark has put on the shirt with his two young children, the twins Vincent and Josephine, 13 years old, to cheer on their national team shortly before their debut. The three took a photo from the gardens of their palace residence. “Everything will begin soon, so at home we are preparing and we are almost ready for the start of the game,” the monarch wrote. «My family and I wish the team all the luck in the European championship. Let’s go Denmark!” concluded the head of state.

The Danish royal family is a fan of football and this is the first major competition that their national team plays with Frederick as king, so their message of encouragement could not be missing. But he is not the only one to give his athletes encouragement for the competition. A week ago we saw Prince William visiting the English team before his departure to Germany, where Euro 2024 is being held. A meeting in which he took the opportunity to convey to the team the curious advice that his son Louis had given him for the players: “Eat double.”

In Spain, King Felipe VI’s relationship with the national team goes back a long way. Already in 2008, while still Prince of Asturias, he was in the box at the Prater in Vienna when Spain won the European Championship. Two years later, he enjoyed winning the World Cup in South Africa. Successes that earned the Prince of Asturias Award. A passion for football that he has been able to transmit to his daughters, especially the youngest, Infanta Sofía, who is a true fan of this sport who has also played as a midfielder for a team in the capital.

Both she and her sister, Princess Leonor, have accompanied their father in important matches and in recent times, with the rise of women’s football, they have shown their strong support for the national team. They are so fans that they even went without their parents to the Brentford Community stadium in London in July 2021 to watch the national team face Denmark, a clash that ended with a victory for the Spanish team by one goal to zero.

The images of Queen Letizia with her youngest daughter celebrating the victory in the final of the Women’s World Cup soccer by winning by the minimum against England in August of last year in Sydney also remain for history.

But the anecdotes about the kings’ daughters and football go beyond the boxes and the playing field since rumors even broke out about a possible romantic interest of Princess Leonor in Gavi, the very young FC Barcelona player. Speculations that were soon denied in favor of her sister, pointing out that it would be Sofía who had set her eyes on the athlete, even asking her father for an autographed shirt of the player. Comments that came to nothing but that delighted the salseos for weeks.

Now, with the Euro Cup just released, we will have to wait to see what new impressions the competition and the European royal houses leave us for History.