Kate Middleton looks lively in behind-the-scenes snaps as she is greeted by French dignitaries at the Rugby World Cup
Kate Middleton put on an animated show as she chatted to French dignitaries after watching England play Argentina at the Rugby World Cup in Marseille on Saturday.
The 41-year-old Princess of Wales met with Sabrina Agresti-Roubache, Secretary of State for Urban Affairs of France, and Renaud Muselier, President of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur Regional Council.
After watching England beat the South American team, the royal – dressed in a £1,945 recycled white Alexander McQueen suit – held hands and chatted with both politicians.
On Twitter, Ms Agresti-Roubache wrote: “I had the honor of welcoming Her Royal Highness Princess of Wales Kate Middleton, also patron of the English Rugby Federation.”
“A beautiful moment of exchange to remember the friendship that binds our two peoples.”
Kate Middleton put on an animated show as she chatted to Renaud Muselier after watching England play Argentina at the Rugby World Cup in Marseille on Saturday
The 41-year-old Princess of Wales met with Sabrina Agresti-Roubache, France’s Secretary of State for Urban Affairs, after watching England beat Argentina
Mr Muselier later added: “It is a great honor to have met Her Royal Highness Kate Middleton, Princess of Wales, on the sidelines of the #AngleterreArgentine game.”
“Welcome to France, our British friends, during this World Cup #rwc2023.”
The Princess of Wales, clearly popular in France, was cheered by 60,000 spectators as she watched England beat Argentina 27-10.
Kate was in the stands and appeared to be in good spirits as she chatted to World Rugby chairman Bill Beaumont ahead of the game at the Stade de Marseille.
The royal mother-of-three opted for her £1,945 Alexander McQueen white blazer and matching trousers.
She complemented her suit with a stunning set of jewelry, which she first wore to Princess Charlotte’s christening in 2015 – included her pair of Empress diamond carriage earrings from Mappin & Webb, worth £3,750, and the matching Empress mini white gold and diamond necklace, worth £2,000.
Beautiful footage from the event showed the crowd erupting in thunderous applause and cheers for Kate as she was shown in the stadium. She seemed surprised and pleased by the reaction.
Kate, the patron of the Rugby Football Union, watched the game without husband William, who is a patron of the Welsh Rugby Union.
The Princess of Wales beamed and looked elegant in her white ensemble as she watched England play Argentina at the Rugby World Cup in France
She was in the stands and appeared to be in good spirits as she chatted to World Rugby chairman Bill Beaumont before the game at the Stade de Marseille, France
Catherine, Princess of Wales and Patron of the England Rugby Football Union, shakes hands with Alex Mitchell of England in the dressing room after their victory over Argentina
William attended Wales’ opening game against Fiji in Bordeaux on Sunday.
The royal sporting revelations came to light with the launch of a special Rugby World Cup edition of the former England international’s podcast, The Good, the Bad and the Rugby.
In the 50-minute episode, the Prince and Princess of Wales and Anne, the Princess Royal – who are patrons of Welsh, English and Scottish rugby – speak to Mike Tindall, husband of Anne’s daughter Zara, and co-hosts James Haskell and Alex Payne in the Green Drawing Room at Windsor Castle.
The recording, filmed on Wednesday, revealed some of the royal family’s sporting secrets.
As patron of the All England Lawn Tennis Club, it’s no surprise that Kate enjoys the sport in her free time – and sometimes recruits her husband as an opponent.
The princess said she believes her competitive spirit comes from her parents, Carole and Michael Middleton. She said, “If I asked both of my parents, ‘Who is the most competitive?’, they would argue for a long time about who is the most competitive and who is the most athletic.”
William also spoke about the important lesson he hopes his children, Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, 8, and Prince Louis, 5, will learn from playing team sports.
Speaking about the skills gained in “the early years of team sports,” he said, “Learning to lose, which I think we need to focus more on these days.”
“I think people don’t know how to lose well.” When I talk about our children in particular, I want to make sure they understand that.
“I think it’s really important to understand from a young age how to lose and why we lose and grow from that and what you learn from that process.”
“But also win well and don’t brag.” “There are so many life lessons that help all of us in life, in building friendships, in building relationships, in the workplace, that you learn from the first few years of team sports.”
It was then Kate’s turn to explain why she loves team sports, with Mike joking: “I’m not going to say you’re really competitive…” [but] I saw them playing beer pong.’