Prince William basks in Aston Villa triumph with UEFA Europa League final dressing room beer - 'He's a classy guy'

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Aston Villa's players celebrated their UEFA Europa League success in the presence of royalty in Istanbul as Prince William joined the party in the dressing room.

No Filter: History made as Villa win Europa League to end 30-year trophy drought

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The Prince of Wales could be seen watching on at Besiktas Stadium as Villa beat Freiburg 3-0 thanks to goals from Youri Tielemans, Emi Buendia and Morgan Rogers.

And Prince William joined the players after the match for a celebratory drink.

"He was in there having a beer with us," Villa full-back Matty Cash told reporters. "He's just delighted.

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"To be fair [to him], he's such a big supporter. He's always coming to the training ground, always at Villa Park. He deserves moments like these and hopefully he can let his hair down tonight."

"Hopefully, that means it's a free bar!" midfielder John McGinn said on TNT Sports.

"He's a classy guy, as he was in the dressing room before the game. He's a massive Villa fan, so he was never going to miss it.

"It's great to have his support, and he's just a normal guy. Hopefully, he can have a couple of drinks with us and maybe get his credit card out at the end of the night!"

Prince William made a public statement via the Prince and Princess of Wales X account.

"Amazing night!!" the post read. "Huge congratulations to all the players, team, staff and everyone connected to the club! 44 years since the last taste of European silverware!

"Special shout out to Boubacar Kamara who has been out injured but is such an integral part of our team and helped lay the foundations of this success. UTV! VTID."

Villa's win brought them a first major European trophy since 1982 and there were scenes of jubilation among the travelling supporters in Turkey.

"Incredible. Amazing night. I said before there, the people of Aston Villa deserve it, the fans deserve it," Cash added.

"I think how they come out in numbers today was incredible and we've got a parade tomorrow, so the people at home, they're not going to miss out. They're going to enjoy it with us.

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Video credit: TNT Sports

"The gameplan was good. We executed it well. I think we were quite comfortable in the game. And then our big players turn up, score goals and let them do the business."

McGinn was equally effusive about the magnitude of the win: "Tonight was everything we built coming together.

"The pride I felt with 10 minutes to go knowing we were about to be champions - I can't describe it. It means a lot. As a kid growing up, I remember Celtic in 2003.

"It wasn't a great night for them but it was special. I was lucky enough to go to the final at Hampden in 2007. To be here, in 2026, as captain of Aston Villa is incredible. It's the proudest night of my career.

"I'll try to enjoy it. I like to party but I'll take it easy to try and soak it all in.

"Being 31, in my first European final, I've seen my mates [Jack] Grealish and [Andy] Robertson win. It's my turn. It's so special, I'll cherish every minute."

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