Prince William is showing a new side of himself during a recent television appearance.
During Friday's episode of Eugene Levy's Apple TV+ series, The Reluctant Traveler, the Prince of Wales opened up about his childhood, his family life with Kate Middleton, and his future life as king.
Though this interview may be the most intimate conversation we have ever seen with the 43-year-old, not all of the topics discussed are heavy ones. William and Levy also take a trip down memory lane to discuss fond memories of the royal's late grandparents and what hobbies he enjoys with his children: Prince George, 12, Princess Charlotte, 10, and Prince Louis, 7.
"I’m a football fan," he tells the actor in a sneak peek clip. "I support Aston Villa, have you heard of them? Tom Hanks is a big fan."
Just like the Oscar-winning actor, William is a longtime supporter of the Birmingham-based club, even knowing the backstory behind his fandom.
"I love the story that Tom tells about why he suddenly supported Aston Villa — because when he was looking for a team to support, he saw the words 'Aston Villa' and thought that sounded quite like a sunshine-y, nice, 'villa' place to go," the Prince of Wales said. "When, actually, if he turns up to Birmingham, it’s not that sunshine-y."
Hanks recalled that same story during a 2015 appearance on The Graham Norton Show, saying: “Now I know [what it’s really like], and I’m still with them."
So far this season, Aston Villa is ranked towards the bottom of the Premier League, but Prince William has been a supporter since he got "big into football" in school. Before the 2015 FA Cup, he told the BBC’s Gary Lineker that his choice to cheer for the "Villans" rather than one of the more popular clubs was based on his desire to go against the grain.
"All my friends at school were either Man United fans or Chelsea fans, and I didn’t want to follow the run-of-the-mill teams," William explained. "I wanted to have a team that was more mid-table that could give me more emotional rollercoaster moments.”
He continued, “Aston Villa’s always had a great history. I have got friends of mine who support Aston Villa, and one of the first FA Cup games I went to was Bolton vs. Aston Villa back in 2000... It was fantastic, I sat with all the fans with my red beanie on, and I was sat with all the Brummie fans and had a great time. It was the atmosphere, the camaraderie and I really felt that there was something I could connect with.”
The prince has since passed his love of the team onto his eldest son, Prince George. The father-son duo have attended several games together, including a special outing to the two-part Champions League quarterfinal in April 2025, when the pair attended the away game at Paris Saint-Germain before returning to Villa Park for the conclusion.
