Kate Middleton taking over as the patron of England Rugby will be “bittersweet” for Prince Harry to see, a royal expert has claimed.
The Duchess of Cambridge is set to take over as the patron of England Rugby - a position held by Harry before he and his wife Meghan Markle exited their roles as senior royals, OK! reports.
According to Omid Scobie, journalist and co-author of Finding Freedom, Prince Harry is aware that Kate taking over is "just the name of the game".
He said: "Harry is very aware that that's just the name of the game. It was rumoured very early on that Kate would be taking on the rugby patronages.
“She's an authentic fan of the sport so I don't think there'll be any disappointment there but it's no doubt a bittersweet moment when things that Harry was very passionate about are ending up in the hands of others."
Avid sports fan Kate was announced as the new patron of the Rugby Football League and the Rugby Football Union this week.
The appointment was confirmed on the Cambridges' Twitter account, with the statement to say that Kate, 40, was excited about her new role.
The mum of three said she couldn't wait to work with "two fantastic organisations who are committed to harnessing the power that sport can have in bringing communities together and helping individuals flourish".
The news comes shortly after it was announced Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, would be taking over as the patron of the National Theatre - a role previously held by Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex.
While Harry is likely to have a degree of acceptance around Kate taking over the patron role for England Rugby, Omid says Harry will be disappointed with losing his military honours.
The royal expert explained: "I think for him the real disappointment will always lie with losing his military honours.
"When he stood back from his royal role, he always understood that he would lose his royal patronages but it was the military titles he really wanted to carry forward - he had earned those."
However, Omid assures Harry will remain supportive of his sister in law's new role.
He adds: "I think, if anything, he'll probably be quite supportive of Kate taking on the new roles and seeing something he was passionate about in safe hands."
