Catherine, Princess of Wales welcomed the England Women's Rugby team to Windsor Castle. Photo / Kin Cheung, Pool, AFP
Catherine, Princess of Wales welcomed the England Women's Rugby team to Windsor Castle. Photo / Kin Cheung, Pool, AFP
The Princess of Wales has revealed that she plays rugby with her daughter – but wouldn’t want to be tackled by Prince George, her eldest child.
As she met the World Cup-winning Red Roses England team at a Windsor Castle reception this week, the princess said children should not be“pigeonholed” into separate sports too early.
She told the team that both Prince George, 12, and Prince Louis, 7, played rugby at school, whereas 10-year-old Princess Charlotte joins in at home.
Speaking about how schools often choose not to separate boys and girls for sport when they are younger, the princess said: “Charlotte is playing rugby, but at home with the family, so she isn’t playing yet at school.
“Rugby is so accessible, Louis is playing touch rugby, and it’s such a great game. Actually, they shouldn’t necessarily need to pigeonhole boys and girls in particular sports too early.
“Obviously, as they get physically stronger – George now, if we play at home, I do not want to get tackled … but up to a certain age, I think it’s great.”
The princess, who has a self-confessed competitive streak when playing sports, told the team’s captain, Zoe Stratford, that her youngest enjoyed toddler rugby sessions.
“At this time of year, the pitch is either totally swamped or they’re hard,” she said.
As patron of the Rugby Football Union, the princess hosted a reception to celebrate the national team’s achievement in September last year – its first World Cup victory since 2014.
Britain's Catherine, Princess of Wales, poses with members of England Women's Rugby team during a reception following their World Cup win in 2025, at Windsor Castle. Photo / Kin Cheung, Pool, AFP
The players were welcomed to Windsor Castle’s Green Drawing Room by the Band of the Irish Guards, of which the Princess is Colonel, and all wore their winning medals.
The royal asked anyone whether they had a “sore head” after the team marked their win at a ball in London’s Grosvenor Hotel the night before.
She also congratulated them, saying: “Really well done. I hope you were able to celebrate last night and to really reminisce on an incredible achievement.
“You’ve really inspired all the new generation [that] perhaps might not even have thought rugby was for them. I think it really showed how accessible rugby is to so many types of girls in different parts of the country.”
At the end of the reception, she was handed a bag of gifts from the captain, which included a signed England rugby shirt as well as a medal.
Speaking after the princess had left, player Ellie Kildunne said Catherine had been a “good sport” when wearing a cowboy hat at one of the team’s matches.
“She did a bit of a cowboy dance, and it was a really special moment,” Kildunne said. “She’s now officially a cowboy, so I will have to tattoo her as well.”
