At a Glance
- Princess Kate will host the 2025 World Cup-winning England Women’s Rugby team at Windsor Castle on January 15, 2026
- This marks her first solo royal engagement of the year and her first reception for the squad since their September triumph
- Why it matters: The appearance keeps Kate ahead in the friendly household competition with Prince William, whose Welsh Rugby Union side failed to advance from the pool stage and sits 12th in global rankings
Kate Middleton is kicking off 2026 with bragging rights intact. The Princess of Wales will welcome the England Women’s Rugby squad to Windsor Castle on Thursday, January 15, celebrating their 2025 World Cup victory and cementing her early lead in the couple’s lighthearted rugby rivalry.
First Solo Engagement of 2026
The January 15 reception is Kate’s first solo duty of the new year. Players and staff, led by captain Zoe Aldcroft, will tour the castle before presenting the trophy to the princess and posing for an official photograph.
Kate has served as patron of the Rugby Football Union since 2022, when the role was reassigned from Prince Harry after he and Meghan Markle stepped back as working royals.
A Household Divided by Rugby
The patronage puts the princess in direct competition with Prince William, patron of the Welsh Rugby Union. The divide was on full display during last year’s World Cup, when the couple attended separate matches on the same day:
- Kate cheered England versus Australia
- William supported Wales against Fiji
England went on to claim the title and remains the top-ranked women’s team, while Wales exited in the pool stage and is currently ranked 12th globally.
Royal Rugby Expert Weighs In
Family member Mike Tindall, married to Zara Tindall, offered his verdict after Kate visited Twickenham Stadium in 2022. Co-hosting The Good, The Bad & The Rugby podcast, he admitted he searched for ammunition for the family WhatsApp group.
“I text Ellis [Genge] and said, ‘Mate, please tell me anything she messed up on,'” Mike recalled. The reply: “No, she was actually pretty good, and she was really good at kicking.”
Mike concluded, “The best thing is when it rolls to England and Wales, we get the battle of the Cambridges,” referencing the couple’s former titles as Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.
Joint Start to the Year
While the Windsor reception is Kate’s first solo outing, the couple began 2026 together. On January 8 they visited health workers at London’s Charing Cross Hospital to discuss winter virus-season pressures on staff and volunteers.
