The royal family celebrated England’s victory against the Netherlands during the U.E.F.A. European Championship semifinals on Wednesday, July 10.
During the 90th minute of the game, Ollie Watkins scored the winning goal, 2-1, over the Netherlands, pushing The Three Lions to the finals against Spain on Sunday, July 14. Watkins, 28, also plays for England Premier League club Aston Villa.
Following the team’s last-minute win, Prince William and King Charles celebrated the victory.
“What a beauty, Ollie! Congratulations England! #EURO2024 Finalists ???? . W,” Prince William, who attended England's quarterfinals victory against Switzerland at Düsseldorf Arena on July 6, wrote in a post on X (formerly known as Twitter).
King Charles also celebrated the team’s victory, referencing the anxiety-inducing final minutes.
“My wife and I join all our family in wishing you the warmest congratulations on reaching the final of the U.E.F.A. European Championship - and in sending our very best wishes for Sunday’s match,” wrote the King.
“If I may encourage you to secure victory before the need for any last minute wonder-goals or another penalties drama, I am sure the stresses on the nation’s collective heart rate and blood pressure would be greatly alleviated! Good luck, England. Charles R’”
The King’s quip about the national team’s other “penalties drama” is a cheeky nod to the team’s history of key matches being decided by a penalty shootout. The shootout occurs when both teams attempt to score a goal in turn until one player fails to do so, and their team los -
es the game.
According to Talk Sport, England has been in 11 penalty shootouts in major tournaments and has come out victorious only four times. England's last four major tournament appearances have all included penalty shootouts, beginning with the 2018 World Cup.
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The Netherlands gained traction after Xavi Simons scored a goal in the first 10 minutes, but defender Denzel Dumfries fouled England captain Harry Kane, allowing him to score a penalty shot. Quickly, Kane leveled the playing field when he scored a goal at the 18-minute mark.
As the game came to a close, Watkins subbed in for Kane with only nine minutes in the match remaining. Then, he scored the winning goal within the first minute of the few minutes of stoppage time. (Stoppage time is the time added on at the end of the match due to any pauses in the game).
"You might get five minutes, one minute, but you can make a difference, you can win us the tournament," Kane said postgame, per USA Today. "And Oli's been waiting, he's been patient and what he's done out there is outstanding. What a finish. I'm so happy for him, he deserves it."
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The Euro 2024 final match between England and Spain will take place in Berlin on Sunday and air live on Fox at 8 p.m. BST/ 3 p.m. EST/ 12 p.m. PST.
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