Prince William Punches the Air and Gives a Thumbs-Up as He Celebrates His Favorite Soccer Team’s Win: See the Pics

Prince William is celebrating his beloved soccer team Aston Villa’s big win.

On Wednesday, March 12, the Prince of Wales, 42, looked thrilled as his team won 3-0 while playing against Belgium’s Club Brugge at Villa’s home stadium, Villa Park in Birmingham, U.K.

The victory means Aston Villa are now heading to the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals in Paris next month, where they will play Paris Saint Germain in the annual soccer competition.

William, who donned his team’s scarf for the outing, was pictured in the stands with close friends, including Thomas van Straubenzee, who is one of Princess Charlotte’s godfathers, and Edward van Cutsem. The trio screamed as the team made it through, with the royal grabbing van Cutsem’s face at one point, and punching the air. Amid the celebrations, van Cutsem appeared to spill his drink, while fans continued to cheer around them.

It seems like William — who is the patron of the Football Association, the game’s governing body in England — will now be heading to the French capital to watch his team in the next round on April 9, as he told reporters, “See you in Paris,” while leaving the game, per Hello! magazine.

Before the game, the royal wished the Aston Villa squad luck, sharing multiple snaps from his behind-the-scenes visit on Instagram, including shots of him hugging and chatting to players.

“Great to pop in to see @avfcofficial yesterday ahead of tonight’s Champions League game! 💪 Up the Villa! #utv,” the post’s caption read.

Loyal soccer follower William appears to have passed his love of the game to his eldest son, Prince George, 11, who has joined him at many games in the past.

Earlier this week, the Prince of Wales visited Sporting Khalsa FC in Willenhall, West Midlands to check out a referee training course organized as part of the Football Association’s goal to recruit 1,000 people from Black, Asian and mixed heritage backgrounds.

While making his way into the course connected to the FA’s Reflective and Representative campaign, William received a very warm welcome from “hundreds of schoolchildren” and local people who came out to see him, U.K outlet The Mirror reported.

The royal took time for plenty of hellos and hugs at the Tuesday, March 11 engagement, joking that he had “broken the record for the most amount of high fives in 10 minutes” as he mingled with kids from Fibbersley Park Academy. 

The young students came prepared for their royal encounter with Union Jack flags and handmade posters. Per The Mirror, a sign that said “Aston Villa is the best,” unsurprisingly, caught William’s eye, and he gave a thumbs-up to the student who made it for him.

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Supporting Aston Villa is not always smooth sailing for the future king, however. In January, William was seen with his head in his hands one minute and jumping for joy the next as the team took on Celtic, from Glasgow, Scotland in the Champions League. 

The week before, he traveled to Monaco on the south coast of France to watch Aston Villa play against AS Monaco.