The Princess Royal has reflected on England’s defeat in the World Cup during a tour to Thailand.
Anne met former Three Lions striker Emile Heskey at a Play for Change sporting event run for youngsters hosted by Save the Children and Liverpool Football Club Foundation in Bangkok.
The King’s sister said in a speech: “I know the value of football, and I know the value of sport in so many different ways. It’s not just about competition.
“These values really lie in building confidence and teamwork and talent, and the confidence to have that talent and to deal with success and failure.
“And for those who are here from the Liverpool Football Club Foundation, we’re having to deal with failure this morning and some of you didn’t get much sleep, so I apologise.”
Her remarks came as the King quipped “maybe it’s a good day to drown a few sorrows” as he pulled a pint on a tour of a brewery in Blandford in Dorset, and the Prince of Wales declared last night he was gutted” but proud of the England team.
England’s hopes of ending a 60-year wait for World Cup glory were dashed when defending champions Argentina fought back to secure a 2-1 victory in the semi-final in Atlanta.
Heskey said after meeting the princess: “Everyone’s talking about the match.
“She did talk about the match. It was a little bit disappointing but again I always say we’ve done really well, we’re on the right track – next time, next time.”
The princess also met Thai national football players and watched children take part in the sport.
Anne, who earlier this week travelled to South Korea on her long-haul official visit, also had an audience with Thailand’s Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul.
The princess presented him with a letter of condolence after the recent fire which tore through a bar in a popular Bangkok district, killing more than 32 people.
In her earlier speech, Anne had also offered her “deepest condolences” to the country’s king over the death of his mother Queen Sirikit, who died last year, and his eldest daughter Princess Bajrakitiyabha, who died last month after three years in a coma.
“I fear in moments of loss that we are reminded of the importance of relationships and the values that we all share,” Anne said.
Queen Sirikit was hailed as a style icon, and Anne was carrying a traditional Thai Yan Lipao basketry clutch bag, made of lygodium and palm leaves, which was championed by the late Thai queen.
The bag, which the princess carried at a party marking King Charles’s official birthday, was a gift from the Sustainable Arts and Crafts Institute of Thailand.
