Prince William reunites with Princess Charlotte's godfather after appearance with wife Kate

The Prince of Wales was joined by Princess Charlotte's godfather as he enthusiastically celebrated Aston Villa's historic win against Bayern Munich on Wednesday night.

Prince William, 42, was among the spectators at Villa Park alongside his and Kate's close friend, Thomas van Straubenzee.

The pair were pictured cheering and hugging at full time as Villa beat German giants Bayern 1-0 in a repeat of their 1982 European Cup final win.

William's outing came after he was joined by Kate to meet budding photographer Liz Hatton, 16, who has an aggressive form of cancer, at Windsor Castle. 

Thomas is one of the royal's closest and oldest friends, with the pair having attended Ludgrove prep school together.

Property mogul Thomas, who was previously married to former tennis player Lady Melissa Percy, tied the knot with Lucy Lanigan-O'Keeffe (a teacher at George and Charlotte's former school Thomas's Battersea) in 2020. The couple are parents to Mary, four, and Albert, one. William is the godfather of Thomas and Lucy's daughter.  

In turn, Thomas, who gave a speech at William and Kate's royal wedding in 2011, was chosen as one of Princess Charlotte's godparents at her christening in 2015.

The van Straubenzees have long shared a close connection to the royal family, with Prince Harry counting Thomas's younger brother, Charlie, among his friends.

1/5

© Getty

"I've lost my voice"

William's passion for football was evident as he watched the Villa match from the stands with Thomas.

After the game, William admitted: "I've lost my voice. I can't quite believe it. 42 years."

2/5

© Instagram / @avfcofficial

Football legends

Before the Champions League match, William met Villa's 1982 European Cup-winning squad at the ground, with the club posting on its social media account: "Royalty meets Aston Villa royalty."

3/5

© Getty

Life-long Villa fan

William, who is President of the FA, previously shared why he follows the West Midlands club, telling Gary Lineker in 2015: "A long time ago at school I got into football big time. I was looking around for clubs. All my friends at school were either Man United fans or Chelsea fans and I didn't want to follow the run of the mill teams. I wanted to have a team that was more mid-table that could give me more emotional rollercoaster moments. Aston Villa's always had a great history."

4/5

© Getty

The beautiful game

Back in July, the future King was joined by son Prince George at the Euro 2024 final where England lost out on the trophy to Spain.

5/5

© Getty

Thomas and his wife Lucy joined William at Royal Ascot in June.