The British media is criticizing Prince William for refusing to go to Australia

Prince William is the king of laziness. William has been President of the Football Association for years, and he’s used that position to A) hang out with athletes, B) go to football games and count it as work and C) pretend to care about racism and mental health, but only in the narrow scope of football (and even then, not so much). William happens to be FA President during a period where everything has come together perfectly for England’s women’s national team, the Lionesses.

The Lionesses have been playing so well in recent years, winning the Women’s Euros last year and making it to the FIFA Women’s World Cup final this week. William was watching the semifinal from an undisclosed location in England, and he tweeted out his congratulations to the Lionesses on Wednesday. Immediately, there was speculation about whether he would fly last-minute to Sydney to watch the final. Kensington Palace aides sniffed to multiple outlets that of course he would NOT cut off his months-long vacation to do a few days of work. Don’t give me any bullsh-t about Earthshot – there are plenty of commercial flights to Australia and there’s literally nothing on his schedule. It’s HIS JOB to promote English football and the Lionesses are doing this amazing thing and their royal patron can’t be bothered to show up. Well, people are noticing Peg’s laziness yet again, especially because Spain’s Queen Letizia taking time out from her much busier schedule to fly down to support the Spanish team.

Prince William and Rishi Sunak’s decision not to travel to support England at the women’s World Cup final sparked anger today – as Spain’s Queen Letizia announced her attendance in Australia. Kensington Palace confirmed that Prince William, who is president of the Football Association, would not be making the trip Down Under, but instead will be roaring on the Lionesses from home. The Prince of Wales, a huge champion of the fight against climate change, is believed to be concerned by the impact of flying across the world for a very short period of time. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will also not be in attendance for the weekend’s showpiece event in Sydney, Downing Street sources suggested.

However, their absence sparked fury from some commentators, who felt they should have committed to the visit.

Royal expert Phil Dampier tweeted: ‘If #PrinceWilliam as President of the FA isn’t going to the Women’s World Cup final we should be told why not. It’s a long way and Australia hasn’t had a visit by him or #TheKing since Charles came to the throne. That’s the problem. If the final was in Europe he’d be there!’

Mandu Reid, leader of the Women’s Equality Party, added: ‘No chance that Prince William would be ‘missing in action’ if the England Men’s Football Team made it to the World Cup Final.’ Another football fan wrote: ‘FA president Prince William, who’s on his summer break, will not attend the women’s World Cup final. I would have thought it was the kind of thing FA presidents did.’

A fourth added: ‘It speaks volumes that the PM and royal family can’t be bothered to attend England Women’s World Cup final even in a Commonwealth country.’

However, the Royal Spanish Football Federation has confirmed that Queen Letizia and her 16-year-old daughter, Infanta Sofia, will be jetting to Australia for the match. The pair will sit in the presidential box at the Accor Stadium, but won’t be joined by King Felipe, who is busy with other official duties.

[From The Daily Mail]

“The Prince of Wales, a huge champion of the fight against climate change, is believed to be concerned by the impact of flying across the world for a very short period of time.” He does not have similar qualms about using a private, dedicated helicopter everywhere instead of a car or train. He doesn’t have similar qualms about flying all the way to Boston – and forcing a dozen celebrities to do the same – while refusing to invite the actual Earthshot Prize winners. It seems William’s environmental qualms are pretty f–king selective. Queen Letizia is doing the right thing here, just as King Felipe did the right thing by going to Wimbledon for Carlos Alcaraz’s final last month. Also: you know it’s bad when the Mail is publishing tweets critical of William. Meanwhile, the Telegraph is taking William down a few pegs (ha).

Spain’s Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) said the Queen would fly out to watch the match in the Accor Stadium “to show, once again, the royal household’s support for national football”. Their presence in the stands will only serve to highlight the lack of British royalty.

Gerry Sutcliffe, a former minister for sport, who championed the women’s game, said: “I think the Prince of Wales should be there.

“I know it’s a long way and I’m sure he has family commitments but this is a unique moment, it’s the World Cup final and he’s the president of the FA.” Mr Sutcliffe, a former Labour MP who served under Gordon Brown, said the final would be a moment that “brings the nation together”, adding that if there was a legitimate reason why the Prince could not go then the King should attend in his place. The Prince’s decision was based on the fact that it is an incredibly long flight for such a relatively short period of time, sources suggested.

Mark Bullingham, chief executive of the FA, said it was known the Prince would not be able to attend because of logistical constraints.

“We always knew that he couldn’t,” said Mr Bullingham. “He came to see the team and wished them well before they left. He sent various messages of support and he was really upfront that, even if we made the final, he unfortunately couldn’t make it. It just sadly wasn’t to be. I know he’s committed to the Lionesses, as he is to the England men as well. He came to see them before they flew and was explicit in the fact he couldn’t fly.”

However, Leah Williamson, England’s long-term captain, who has missed this tournament through injury, will attend the match. The Arsenal defender, who underwent knee surgery in April, also attended the Lionesses’ quarter-final victory over Colombia. Mr Bullingham also confirmed that James Cleverly, the Foreign Secretary, and Lucy Frazer, the Culture Secretary, would both attend the final to represent the UK Government.

[From The Telegraph]

William clinging to the environmental impact of, you know, doing his job and showing up for the national team is a big choice. Perhaps that should have been his excuse this whole time – he couldn’t work or do events because of the environmental impact, you guys. This might even be the start of some larger criticism of William, especially if it turns out that he flew off to some far-flung vacation spot this summer. The Mail might even publish some stories about William’s daily helicopter rides.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.