'Eat twice as much...Prince Louis's advice to England

ENGLAND men's football team has been advised to "eat twice as much as you normally would" by five-year-old Prince Louis ahead of the Euro 2024 tournament.

- Emily Ferguson

The Prince of Wales jokingly shared his youngest child's advice as he visited Gareth Southgate's newly announced team to wish them luck before they headed to Germany yesterday.

William, president of the Football Association, went to St George's Park, England's national football centre in Burton upon Trent, to meet the squad and their head coach Southgate in a surprise visit for the players.

The 41-year-old prince gave an off-the-cuff rallying speech, where he told the squad that he had asked his children on the school run this morning what they would say to the 26 players.

William said: "The best bit of advice I got to ask you was to eat twice the amount you normally would eat.

"So I then had visions of you all running around with massive tummies and loads of stitches on the pitch so maybe take my youngest's advice with a pinch of salt, particularly around the physio." The Prince told them he had seen "every single one" of them play this season.

Brutal

He added: "Tournament football is brutal and it requires a lot more than you've already given.

"It's going to be difficult, it's going to be fun, it's going to be challenging, it's going to be everything that you've you've ever dreamed of, you know, wearing that England shirt."

William said he knew having the England kit means you have a target on your back" as "everyone wants to beat us" but added he had every faith in the squad.