Prince William and his wife, Kate Middleton, are heading to the US next week for official duty representing King Charles III.
Many royal observers say the trip is make or break for King Charles, who wants to restore the place of the monarchy on the world stage.
The new King hopes that Prince William and Middleton will wow the American public and the media with their humanism and a glitzy award ceremony.
While none of the royals want to say it out loud, behind closed doors, they do acknowledge it is a competition.
The monarchy is fighting for the spotlight and authority that already belong to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.
Inside Buckingham Palace, they have admitted that Prince Harry’s well-established star power will be a challenge.
Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, and the former actress moved to the United States in 2020 and, via a series of bombshell interviews and big deals, have become household names in America.
The duo has attracted more fans and allies through their activism — they have spoken against racism, police brutality, and injustice toward women.
Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, and Prince Harry plan to share more of their private lives with fans and supporters via their upcoming Netflix series and tell-all memoir Spare.
Prince William and Catherine, Princess of Wales, while adored in England, have not been on American soil for the past eight years.
The future King and Queen of England rarely conduct interviews and keep to themselves even when their names are mentioned in salacious rumors.
According to royal expert and author Richard Kay in The Daily Mail, the Royal Family is not naive and is fully aware that the task of stealing Prince Harry and Markle’s shine is a difficult one.
Kay shared: “Now, the Prince is venturing onto his brother’s territory, a potential challenger to Harry’s authority as the most popular royal in America….Within royal circles, it is being viewed as the most important overseas excursion for years and is designed to put the Windsors on the front foot.”
Catherine, Princess of Wales, and William, Prince of Wales, plan to do their best, but there is some self-doubt looming stemming from the disastrous Caribbean Tour.
The author revealed: “The [Waleses’] trip is certainly businesslike and worthy. The question is whether it will deliver the kind of positive headlines that make for good PR. Many of the details are under wraps, but there is talk of a visit to a university campus and to a basketball game, two opportunities for the Prince and Princess to mix with young people.”
In a matter of weeks, the world will know who won the PR war, Markle’s speech when she accepts the Ripple of Hope Award from the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Center or Middleton’s gown at The Earthshot Prize ceremony.
