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Prince William has revealed his ‘crucial motto’ for parenting Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.
The royal, 42, made the cheeky comment about his family dynamic during a visit to the NFL Foundation in London on Tuesday.
During the event, the Prince of Wales was encouraged to showcase his American football skills by the organisers, whose day-to-day work focuses on tackling challenges faced by young people in some of the most deprived areas of the UK.
After throwing the American football through a series of targets, Prince William was presented with one to take home to his children.
In response, William said: ‘Oh, that’s very kind. Never go home empty-handed.
The royal (pictured), 42, made the cheeky comment about his family dynamic during a visit to the NFL Foundation in London yesterday
‘That’s a crucial motto of being a parent. That’s very kind of you, thank you very much. They’ll love that.’
William joked that he would practise his skills at home and ‘see how many windows he could smash’ after impressing professional players with his efforts on the pitch.
The royal joined a community event in south London hosted by the NFL Foundation UK, a charity that works with young people in deprived areas.
It uses NFL Flag, a non-contact version of American football, to engage teenagers and help change lives.
The Prince gamely had a go at several throwing drills before taking to the pitch as a quarterback.
Louis Rees-Zammit, a former Welsh rugby player who recently switched to NFL, was impressed with his skills.
‘He can throw the ball,’ he said. ‘He can throw the ball better than me. He can get a good spiral on the ball as well, not like me!’
Phoebe Schecter, GB women’s flag football team captain, added: ‘His arm strength is incredible. I could not believe how far he could throw the ball. He did a great job. Very coachable.’
Prince William has revealed his ‘crucial motto’ for parenting Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis (pictured)
The Prince of Wales appeared thoroughly immersed in the game, pointing around him and gesturing
The Prince of Wales also showed his quick reflexes as he caught the ball during the game yesterday
The Prince of Wales made an impressive throw as he hurled the ball to another player at the event yesterday
Prince William speaks to Phoebe Schecter as he attends a NFL Foundation NFL Flag event in South London
One activity involved throwing the ball into one of several small holes in a large net.
After getting some advice on how to stand and how to hold the ball, the Prince missed his first shot but was elated to get his second in the net.
There were jubilant high fives all round as he joked: ‘One out of two’s alright. I’ll retire on that. That’s my NFL career.’
After being persuaded to go again, he was disappointed to miss, complaining that he ‘got no spin on it’s. The Prince asked how to get the ball to ‘spin properly’ before throwing his fourth shot wide of the net but then scoring his fifth, to loud cheers.
William also tried his hand at throwing the ball to teenagers who ran and dived onto a crash mat as they landed and throwing it to others from a distance, with mixed results.
He admitted he did not understand the tactics involved in NFL, saying that if he did, he ‘might get a bit more into it.’
When he was given three mini balls to take home for his three children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, as well as a full size one for himself, he laughed: ‘I’ll do some practice at home and see how many windows I can smash.’
The Prince was accompanied on the visit to Kennington Park by Henry Hodgson, general manager of NFL UK, and Will Stone, head of social impact and government strategy.
They explained that flag football has become increasingly popular in the UK, with a surge in the number of schools involved and the sport due to be played at the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games.
Later on, William met with Welsh athlete and NFL player Louis Rees-Zammit
The NFL Foundation, which is celebrating its three-year anniversary, is the first NFL charitable arm to be launched overseas.
The Prince met representatives from NFL UK and community partners to hear about the work being undertaken to help young people develop confidence and reach their potential through sport.
He asked many of the teenagers playing for their communities what it was they liked about the sport, how it differed to rugby and football and what kind of skills they needed.
He told Ms Schecter that when he was younger he used to play the sport on the beach. ‘One summer we had 12 of us on the beach, it was loads of fun,’he said.
As patron of the Welsh Rugby Union, the Prince had met Rees-Zammit on more than one occasion. ‘Good to see you again, different guise!’ he said.
William asked which skills NFL were looking for and what the differences were between the two sports. ‘Is it like chalk and cheese?’ he asked. ‘Do you come on for two minutes and just blitz it and go off again?’
The NFL has been playing regular-season games in London since 2007, with games being played this month at the Tottenham Hotspur and Wembley stadiums.
The NFL Foundation UK launched in 2021 in partnership with the Mayor of London’s Sport Unites fund and has since received funding from Sport England to expand beyond London to Greater Manchester, Birmingham and Leeds through a partnership with the San Francisco 49ers.
On this occasion, William was making a solo outing without the Princess of Wales, who has been making a slow but steady return to engagements following her preventative chemotherapy treatment.
Later on, William met with Welsh athlete and NFL player Louis Rees-Zammit and GB Women’s Flag football captain Phoebe Schecter.
The heir to the throne posed with Zammit, 23, holding a special NFL shirt reading ‘HRH 24’, before taking a group photograph with the participants.
The NFL Foundation, which is celebrating its three year anniversary, aims to provide a fast-paced, inclusive and easy to access American Football format.
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