Queen: One supports Arsenal
Royal colours ... how Queen might look in Arsenal shirt, left, and Her Majesty meets players, including Fabregas and Arsene Wenger. Queen Mum, right, was fan too
By DUNCAN LARCOMBE
Royal Correspondent
April 23, 2007
THE Queen has been a keen Arsenal supporter for more than 50 YEARS, royal sources say.
And she followed in the footsteps of her late mum the Queen Mother, who was a Gunners fanatic too.
Arsenal: The "Gunners"
Although the Queen has presented a string of soccer trophies, her club allegiance has never been revealed before.
Her Majesty, 81, is said to have confessed her love of Arsenal at a February reception at Buckingham Palace, attended by players and officials from the club.
Midfielder Cesc Fabregas, 19, said she made a beeline for him after spotting him across the room — then chatted about her pal King Juan Carlos of Spain.
Queen's pal: King Juan Carlos I of Spain
Fabregas said on Spanish radio: “It seems the Queen follows football and she told us she was an Arsenal fan. She appeared to definitely know who I was and we exchanged a few special words.”
Arsenal were invited to the Palace after a back injury forced the Queen to pull out of opening their new ground, the Emirates Stadium, last October.
The senior royal source said: “Her Majesty has been fond of Arsenal for over 50 years.
“Her late mother was a self-confessed Gooner, due largely to her admiration of their former player Denis Compton.”
The Queen Mother revealed her love of Arsenal to then-schoolboy John Pollex in 1955.
As they chatted about Gunners legend Compton, she told him: “I’m an Arsenal supporter! Didn’t you know?”
The Queen’s grandson Prince Harry, 22, has also shown HIS support for the North London giants — visiting both their old home Highbury and the Emirates Stadium.
thesun.co.uk
Royal colours ... how Queen might look in Arsenal shirt, left, and Her Majesty meets players, including Fabregas and Arsene Wenger. Queen Mum, right, was fan too
By DUNCAN LARCOMBE
Royal Correspondent
April 23, 2007
THE Queen has been a keen Arsenal supporter for more than 50 YEARS, royal sources say.
And she followed in the footsteps of her late mum the Queen Mother, who was a Gunners fanatic too.
Arsenal: The "Gunners"
Although the Queen has presented a string of soccer trophies, her club allegiance has never been revealed before.
Her Majesty, 81, is said to have confessed her love of Arsenal at a February reception at Buckingham Palace, attended by players and officials from the club.
Midfielder Cesc Fabregas, 19, said she made a beeline for him after spotting him across the room — then chatted about her pal King Juan Carlos of Spain.
Queen's pal: King Juan Carlos I of Spain
Fabregas said on Spanish radio: “It seems the Queen follows football and she told us she was an Arsenal fan. She appeared to definitely know who I was and we exchanged a few special words.”
Arsenal were invited to the Palace after a back injury forced the Queen to pull out of opening their new ground, the Emirates Stadium, last October.
The senior royal source said: “Her Majesty has been fond of Arsenal for over 50 years.
“Her late mother was a self-confessed Gooner, due largely to her admiration of their former player Denis Compton.”
The Queen Mother revealed her love of Arsenal to then-schoolboy John Pollex in 1955.
As they chatted about Gunners legend Compton, she told him: “I’m an Arsenal supporter! Didn’t you know?”
The Queen’s grandson Prince Harry, 22, has also shown HIS support for the North London giants — visiting both their old home Highbury and the Emirates Stadium.
thesun.co.uk