Duke of Sussex, in Germany for the Invictus Games, took defeat in his stride as Boris Pistorius emerged victorious
England’s penalty shootout record against Germany has long left much to be desired.
Despite his best efforts, the Duke of Sussex was unable to restore national pride on Saturday when he was thrashed by Boris Pistorius, the German defence minister, in a TV shootout.
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Prince Harry, 38, followed in the footsteps of Stuart Pearce and Gareth Southgate by missing spot-kicks during the appearance on German television.
The Duke, in Dusseldorf for the Invictus Games, appeared on the long-standing Das Aktuelles Sportstudio programme on ZDF, and was told that if he lost the tongue-in-cheek shootout he would have to put on a German football jersey.
He took a total of six shots but failed to score a single goal. Handing the ball to Mr Pistorius, he joked: “This one is rubbish.”
Things went from bad to worse when the defence minister managed to score two out of three strikes, but the Duke took defeat in his stride as he laughed about his terrible performance. He joked that Mr Pistorius should be made the new manager of the German national team, prompting the minister to quip: “I have enough troubles.”
As no German football jersey was to hand, the Duke put on a local German football scarf instead, earning a round of applause and a loud cheer.
He chatted to presenters Katrin Muller-Hohenstein and Sven Voss about his experiences as a soldier in Afghanistan and his mission with the Invictus Games as a film about the event was broadcast.
Trying to divert attention from himself to the athletes, sick and injured military personnel, he said: “I’ve spoken a lot and at length about myself in the past to encourage others to speak about their experiences. They should have been given the main part of this film, not me.”
Meanwhile, Mr Pistorius addressed criticism that the Games glorified war, saying: “On the contrary – it shows the horrors of war. Soldiers are role models who show how you can fight your way back into life with sport.
“It’s about being able to look not at what you can’t do any more, but at what you can do now or could do in the future.”
The Duke spoke about his experiences as a soldier in Afghanistan and his mission with the Invictus Games
The Invictus Games kicked off earlier on Saturday evening with a rousing opening ceremony at the Merkur Arena, where 500 participants from 21 countries were introduced.
The Duke told them his wife, Meghan, would be cheering on Nigeria, having recently discovered that she was of Nigerian descent. Last October, she revealed on her Archetypes podcast that she was “43 per cent Nigerian”.
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After giving a special welcome to Colombia, Israel and Nigeria, the three nations new to the competition this year, Prince Harry said: “Now, I’m not saying we play favourites in our home, but since my wife discovered that she’s of Nigerian descent it’s likely to get a little bit competitive this year.”
On Sunday, the Duke watched France take on the UK in a wheelchair rugby match, fist-bumping spectators and playfully tugging a Canadian fan’s beard. He chatted to a handful of Britons during the brief appearance inside the stadium, giving the players a thumbs up.
