Aston Villa claimed their first European trophy since 1982 after defeating Freiburg in the Europa League final in Istanbul, with Prince William among the fans celebrating at Besiktas Park
Prince William was in tears as he part of the Aston Villa faithful who lived the dream in Istanbul after witnessing their cherished club claim a European trophy for the first time since 1982.
The future King was spotted at Besiktas Park on Wednesday evening as Villa took on Freiburg in the Europa League final – and he had every reason to rejoice. Unai Emery’s men had virtually secured the silverware by the interval thanks to two spectacular strikes from Youri Tielemans and Emi Buendia.
Morgan Rogers tucked home at the near post on the hour mark to put the contest beyond doubt and spark wild celebrations both in the stadium and back home. The 43-year-old royal was pictured in tears in the crowd as his favourite team ended a three-decade wait for a trophy.
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After the game, he posted on X: “Amazing night!! Huge congratulations to all the players, team,staff and everyone connected to the club! 44 years since the last taste of European silverware!
“Special shout out to Boubacar Kamara who has been out injured but is such an integral part of our team and helped lay the foundations of this success. UTV! VTID W”
And club captain John McGinn addressed Prince William’s support in a post-match interview on TNT Sports, saying he was just a “normal guy” to meet and that he hoped they would celebrate together later, joking that he hoped the future king would “get his credit card out to pay for a few drinks”.
The triumph delivers Villa their first major silverware in 30 years, since they beat Leeds United 3-0 in the League Cup final in 1996, and represents another Europa League success for Unai Emery, who had claimed four previous titles in the competition before facing Freiburg.
Emery’s only reverse in the five Europa League finals he had participated in prior to Wednesday evening’s encounter came in 2019 when his Arsenal team suffered a 4-1 defeat to Chelsea in Baku, reports the Mirror.
The former Arsenal boss had already secured another Champions League qualification for Villa following an impressive Premier League campaign, where they require just a single point from their remaining fixture to clinch fourth spot.
Villa last appeared in a major cup final during the 2019-20 season, when they fell 2-1 to Manchester City in the Carabao Cup final at Wembley.