Prince William breaks royal travel protocol to watch Aston Villa lose 3-0 in Barcelona

Prince William sparked concern among royal circles after travelling with his son Prince George on the same commercial flight to watch Aston Villa’s Champions League fixture against Barcelona on November 3 — a match Villa lost 3-0.

The pair flew together on a British Airways service for the two-hour journey to Spain, and are reported to have shared the return flight home as well. According to The Daily Mail, the trip breached an unwritten royal convention that dictates heirs to the throne should not travel together once they reach a certain age, in order to safeguard the line of succession in the event of a fatal accident.

The convention is not a legal requirement and can be overridden by the monarch. The late Queen Elizabeth II permitted the then-Duke and Duchess of Cambridge to fly with a young Prince George during a tour of Australia and New Zealand. King Charles’ former royal pilot has also confirmed that until 1994, Charles, Diana, William, and Harry all travelled together — but once William turned 12, he was required to take a separate aircraft from his father.

William has been a committed Aston Villa supporter since his time at Eton College in the late 1990s, having reportedly chosen the club for the “emotional rollercoaster moments” they offered and noting the coincidence of his 1982 birth year — the same year Villa won the European Cup. He was present in Istanbul earlier this year when Villa claimed the Europa League trophy, and George appears to have developed a similar attachment to the club.

Royal biographer Robert Jobson has addressed concerns attributed to King Charles that William may not be taking sufficient precautions to protect the line of succession. Further reports suggest the Prince and his close family regularly travel together by helicopter, which is said to be adding to unease within royal circles.

George, who was on half-term break from Eton College at the time of the Barcelona trip, is the second in line to the throne behind his father.