The Prince and Princess of Wales are set to attend different Women’s Rugby World Cup games on Saturday afternoon. William will watch Wales take on Fiji at Sandy Park stadium in Exeter, whilst Kate heads to Brighton & Hove Albion Stadium for England versus Australia.
The separate attendance reflects their respective royal patronages. William serves as patron of the Welsh Rugby Union, while Kate holds the same position with the Rugby Football Union.
Royal mourning begins
The sporting engagements come as the royal family enters a period of mourning following the death of the Duchess of Kent. On Friday, William and Kate paid a personal tribute to Katharine, wife of the late Queen’s cousin the Duke of Kent, who died peacefully at home surrounded by close family on Thursday night.
Union flags were lowered to half-mast at Buckingham Palace and royal residences across the country where the monarch is not in residence as a mark of respect. A formal framed notice announcing the duchess’s death was placed on the palace railings shortly after midday on Friday.
Funeral arrangements confirmed