The Prince of Wales has spoken to England stars Harry Kane and Declan Rice about their shared love of football and the life lessons it has taught them over the years.
William and the World Cup hopefuls talk about their fondest football memories and the ways it has bolstered their mental well-being during a 25-minute video available on YouTube.
The episode is hosted by Kelvyn Quagraine and organized by soccer media company Copa90 with the Royal Foundation.
During their conversation, William, a huge Aston Villa fan, credits football for teaching him that “disappointment is a part of life”, and highlights the work of Shout, the free and confidential 24/7 text messaging service hours, 7 days a week for people struggling with mental health issues. Health.
He said: “Playing various times and many other things in life, you learn that disappointment is a part of life and how you deal with it is crucial.
“Dealing with some of those really disappointing results from England in the past was difficult, I found it really difficult, because again the same euphoria that we had comes crashing down.
“You feel good and everything together, and then normal life starts again.”
William added that he has “a lot of friends” who he met playing football in his youth.
“Some of the best friendships are born from playing games and being pushed together through mild adversity,” he said.
The prince also recalled playing four simultaneous soccer games with his entire team at school, around 60 students, using multiple balls.
He told the football stars: “The sheer size and scale and the fun of everyone running around chasing each other, I loved it.
“I was a defender, I was stuck in the back and they told me to just front.”
The prince said he looked to former England defender Rio Ferdinand for “inspiration” when he played football at school.
William joked, “He got a little ahead of me as time went on.”
Spurs striker Kane recalled his father giving him £5 after he scored his first goal as a five-year-old, and spoke about the Harry Kane Foundation, which partnered with Shout.
The England captain said: “I have just launched a foundation which is really exciting for me.
“My goal is, especially for the younger generation, to talk to them and try to provide ways to talk about mental health and wellness.
“The more we talk about it and open up, it will definitely help resolve and hopefully encourage people not to be afraid to ask for help, especially when they’re feeling a little low.”
West Ham captain Rice said that as a child he loved playing football with his older brothers, explaining how England’s defeat in the Euro final last year brought the team closer together.
Speaking about the final against Italy, the England midfielder said: “There was a special moment after that game, the togetherness when we all came together after losing that, and Gareth said some really important words.
“As a group, I think that made us move forward together because then we had to qualify for a World Cup in the next round of games.
“We really got over that setback of losing that final, we showed our togetherness and our strength and I feel like we are in a very good place as a national team that we can keep pushing and improving because the togetherness that we have built is really special. be part of.”
Ed Groves, managing editor of Copa90, said he hoped their conversation would remind people “of the power of speaking up when it comes to your mental health.”
“As football fans, we can experience every possible emotion in 90 minutes,” he said.
“But while we all yearn to bask in collective glory, we must remember to support each other through the toughest of times, in football and in life.”
Groves encouraged fans to gather to watch the Qatar 2022 matches.
