King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands and two of his daughters, Princesses Amalia (15) and Ariane (12) took in the World Cup final game in Lyon, France, yesterday to watch the Netherlands face off against the United States. His wife, Queen Máxima and their middle daughter, Princess Alexia (14) were not in attendance.
The family was decked out in the country’s famous orange to root on their team with the Princesses wearing matching orange jerseys while the King wore an orange tie and had a team scarf that matched his daughters’.
The royals were able to see a hard-fought match before a penalty kick would change the tide in America’s favour.
The US would go on to win 2-0 after scoring twice in the final 20 minutes. This was America’s record-setting fourth title and second World Cup victory in a row.
Naturally disappointed, the royals were shown applauding the US team as they were given the World Cup trophy.
His Majesty and Their Royal Highnesses met with the Dutch team after their defeat and posed for a group photo with the athletes showing off their medals.
Princess Catharina-Amalia, who holds the title of Princess of Orange as heir to the Dutch throne, is the eldest of King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima and is commonly just referred to as Amalia. Princess Ariane is the youngest child of Their Majesties.
The Dutch royals are known to love football and were present during some of the men’s matches in Brazil for the 2018 Summer Olympic Games.
Even those royals who were not in attendance at the game showed their support for the Dutch women. The husband of the King’s aunt, Princess Margriet, Pieter van Vollenhoven said, in part on Twitter after the game, “All the admiration for the excellent performance of our lionesses and indeed the goalkeeper is really fantastic!”
