King Charles Slammed For 'Embarrassing' Omission in Message to the Lionesses: 'Black Women Aren't...'
King Charles can't seem to catch a break. Last week, the monarch came under fire for allegedly paying his gardeners minimum wage and fostering toxic work conditions at Highgrove. Now, he’s embroiled in controversy once again, accused of racial bias. On July 23, he posted a sweet celebratory message for the England Women’s football team as they advanced to the finals of the Euro Cup. However, one glaring omission in the photo posted had royal fans fuming, as they called out Charles for his apparent snub of player Michelle Agyemang, who is of Ghanaian descent.
As reported by GB News, Charles celebrated the Lionesses' numerous achievements on social media, praising the team’s remarkable journey and extending well-wishes as they prepared for the finals. His statement partly read, "Knowing the Lionesses' fighting spirit, I suspect we are in for another thrilling encounter on Sunday... Your achievements continue to inspire countless girls and women across the nation, proving once again that with dedication and teamwork, anything is possible." While his poster featured most of the football squad, newcomer Agyemang was noticeably absent. The 19-year-old, who made her debut in April, has been instrumental in leading England through the knockout rounds.
As fans noted Charles' blunder, they took to the comments section of the post to call out his bias. A royal watcher quipped, "Not surprising that Michelle Agyemang isn’t in the graphic… Not saying and words that begin with R, but…" In a similar vein, another echoed, "Nice bit of racism there excluding Agyemang." A comment also read, "Michelle Agyemang has arguably been the most important player of this tournament for the Lionesses. But in the Royal Family’s message of support ahead of the final, she’s not pictured or acknowledged at all. Black women aren't invisible. Let's stop erasing them." Meanwhile, a netizen slammed, "Where is Michelle Agyemang in this picture? You purposefully left her out. Embarrassing." As the comments poured in, another opined, "You missed Michelle Agyemang from your image!! Why??? You’re not helping yourselves…"
Other than Agyemang, back-up goalkeepers, Khiara Keating and Anna Moorhouse, were also missing from the graphic. Since neither of them has competed in the tournament so far, their absence drew less attention, unlike Agyemang, whose goals played a key role in England’s progress. The Lionesses went on to face Spain on July 27, winning the World Cup after their heartbreaking loss in 2023. It seems the King caught wind of the backlash from his earlier post, as his congratulatory message was noticeably more cautious. This time, Charles praised the team’s victory and cheekily nudged them to bring the trophy home again in 2027. Interestingly, he ditched the player image altogether and instead chose a simple poster featuring the England flag for his statement.
Echoing Charles' pride, Prince William and Princess Charlotte, who attended the Euros final together at St. Jakob-Park in Basel, also shared a joint congratulatory message on Instagram. As per Hello! magazine, they wrote, "What a game! @lionesses, you are the champions of Europe, and we couldn't be prouder of the whole team. Enjoy this moment, @England. William & Charlotte." While the royal children have previously signed off joint messages for birthdays and Father's Day, this marks the first time a message has been personally signed by the young Princess as 'Charlotte'.