HRH Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh

HRH The Duke of Edinburgh with Queen Elizabeth II as Bobby Moore collects the Julets Rimet Trophy in 1966. Photo: thefa.com

Following the news earlier today of the passing of HRH Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, former President of The Football Association, we would like to suggest that clubs wishing to mark the occasion do so with a minute's silence and, where appropriate, flags lowered to half-mast.

His Royal Highness was President of The FA between 1955 and 1957, although he attended his first FA Cup Final in 1949 and would be a regular presence at the Wembley showpiece into the 1960s.

The tradition for him to be introduced to both teams before kick-off included the memorable 1953 Final made famous by Sir Stanley Matthews’ Blackpool side winning 4-3 against Bolton Wanderers. The Prince remained an honorary member of The FA and accompanied HM The Queen at the 1966 World Cup Final at Wembley in which England defeated West Germany 4-2 to lift the trophy for the only time, at the time of writing. 

In 2021 there are many different perspectives on how to mark such occasions and we do not wish anyone to feel pressured to participate in any observance where they do not feel comfortable. We therefore encourage clubs and/or teams to discuss the issue ahead of kick-off to ensure any such observances go ahead smoothly.