Royal rivalry: William and Kate support different teams at Six Nations rugby tournament

Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge will attend the Six Nations match. Photo / Getty Images

The Prince and Princess of Wales will attend the Six Nations rugby tournament at the weekend – but will be cheering on different sides.

Prince William and his wife Catherine will take their seats at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff to watch Wales v England but back opposing teams because the 42-year-old heir to the throne is patron of the Welsh Rugby Union, while his wife is patron of the Rugby Football Union, which governs the English game.

Before the game, Kensington Palace announced the royal couple will meet with injured players receiving support from the Welsh Rugby Charitable Trust – of which William is also patron – at the Sir Tasker Watkins Suite, an area specially designed for injured players and their families before matches.

The couple – parents to Princes George, 11, and Louis, 6, and 9-year-old Princess Charlotte – are both avid sports fans and fiercely competitive with each other.

And Catherine previously admitted she and her husband rarely finish a game of tennis because it has become a “mental challenge” between them.

Speaking to Mike Tindall, the husband of William’s cousin Zara Tindall, and his co-hosts Alex Payne and James Haskell on their podcast The Good, the Bad and the Rugby, she previously said: “I’m not competitive at all.”

But she then admitted: “I don’t think we’ve actually been able to finish a game of tennis. It becomes a mental challenge between the two of us.”

William agreed: “It is who can out-mental each other.”

And during a reception for the England Wheelchair Rugby League squad at Hampton Court Palace two years ago, the 43-year-old royal revealed Louis in particular was a big rugby fan.

She told players: “We’re always slightly competitive with each other. They all love sport and Louis is mad about rugby.

“They are at an age where they just love running around.”

And she was thrilled when the squad invited her, William and the children to join them at a training session.

She said: “I’d love to come and play. There’s no excuse now. We’re going to have to have a family training session.”

Catherine posed with the World Cup trophy and joined the full team for a photo.