Emily Zemler
View all posts by Emily Zemler July 3, 2026
Prince William and Travis Kelce Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images; Jamie Squire/Getty Images Prince William popped by Travis and Jason Kelce‘s podcast New Heights, with the episode arriving only hours before the Kansas City Chiefs player’s big wedding to Taylor Swift.
In the 30-minute interview, William shared the origins of his love of soccer, attending Swift’s Eras Tour in 2024, and his thoughts on the World Cup so far. Travis opened the conversation by asking if it was William’s father, King Charles, who got him into soccer and Aston Villa FC. Absolutely not,” William replied. “My father hates football.”
He added that he’s been anticipating the World Cup “for a long time.” William, who has been involved with the Football Association for 20 years, said he is “quietly” hoping England will improve their current standing.
“As each World Cup goes on and the results don’t quite go your way, a little bit of hope gets chipped away each time,” William said. “So I’m just, you know, I’m taking it calmly and quietly and like, ‘Come on, we’re going to do well’ and see how we go. But I am quietly confident.” He added, “If we lose, we lose playing the way we want to play.”
Later in the interview, Jason turned the conversation to American football. “What is the most iconic moment at Wembley Stadium: Travis scoring a touchdown in 2015 against the Lions or Travis as a backup dancer to the one and only Taylor Swift?” he asked.
“Travis as a backup dancer,” William replied.
“Definitely a very proud moment of my life, for sure,” Travis added of his moment onstage in 2024. When William suggested he do it again, Travis confirmed, “If Tay’s gonna sign up for a tour, I’ll happily make sure that we bring [it] back to life.”
Travis added that meeting Prince William and his kids, George and Charlotte, at one of the Eras Tour stops in London was “one of the coolest moments ever.”
“Me and Jason joke about it all the time,” Travis said. “We were so nervous to meet you guys and the royal family. Jason has this running joke where he didn’t know what to do with his beer.”
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Jason added, “Yeah, it wasn’t a joke. It was reality. You want to be respectful and know what the protocols are. But it was awesome and you were fantastic. The kids were great. Princess Charlotte was still the highlight for me. I have four daughters as well, so she was great.”
“Congratulations having four daughters,” William replied. “I don’t know how you do that.”
After their chat with William, Travis and Jason marveled at securing him as a guest. “We thought were gonna be talking to, like, fat offensive linemen, not kings, queens, princes of other nations,” Jason said. “This is pretty wild.”