Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge, has officially become the royal patron of the England’s Rugby Football Union and the Rugby Football League. This is an appointment that she is taking over from Prince Harry, and she showed off some impressive rugby skills and athleticism during her first engagement as patron during England’s recent training session at Twickenham. 

Since Harry and Meghan Markle left the royal family, the Queen has been cautious in her redistribution of their royal patronages, waiting two years before handing over the first royal to Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge. 

It’s a fitting choice, as the Middleton family apparently scheduled family events around rugby games during the weekend and Catherine is an athletic woman who excels at almost any sport, which she showed off to great success during her first engagement as patron.

The Duchess participated in a line-out, where the teams jockey to get the ball after it goes out of bounds. One aspect of it requires lifting and holding up a player by their legs so they can potentially grab the ball out of the air. Holding up the future Queen of England, who easily caught the ball sent her way, would be a little nerve-wracking. 

England’s Rugby Football Union released an official statement to commemorate her appointment: “The patronage, which has been given to The Duchess by Her Majesty The Queen, closely aligns with Her Royal Highness’ longstanding passion for sport and the lifelong benefits it can provide, both within our communities and on an individual level.

“‘It is a great honour to welcome The Duchess of Cambridge as our Patron,’ said RFU CEO Bill Sweeney. “Our aim is to enrich lives, introduce more people to rugby union, develop the sport for future generations and create a successful thriving game across the country.

“‘As rugby clubs have re-opened across the country, players, officials and volunteers are celebrating being back in the game together, and we know the support of The Duchess will be greatly valued from our grassroots clubs and fast-growing women and girls’ game, right up to our elite men’s and women’s England teams.’”

“Alongside the RFU, The Duchess has also been named Patron of the Rugby Football League.”

The push to encourage more girls to pick up the sport extends to the royal family as well. During the engagement, Catherine shared that Charlotte has played a bit of rugby at home, though her brothers Princes George and Louis are more into it.

The Duchess shared: “They’re all enjoying it. Louis is kamikaze – we’re worrying about when he gets older, he’ll be in the middle of everything.”  

Apparently, Prince Louis is the wild man of the family. These little nuggets that Catherine and husband Prince William drop about their children are always so lovely to hear.  

Hopefully, the kids will show up at the game between the English and Welsh teams later this month, as both of their parents will likely be there representing their respective teams. Prince William, as the future Prince of Wales, is patron of the Welsh Rugby Union. 

As the couple are very competitive, it will be interesting to see the couple jockeying for their respective teams from the stands. 

Based on this, the Cambridge household is going to get more and more competitive when it comes to rugby going forward.