World Cup match to bring a reigning monarch to KC for first time in a century
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- King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima will attend Curaçao vs. Ecuador in Kansas City.
- They will first watch the Netherlands play Sweden in Houston on Saturday.
- It is believed to be the first visit by a sitting monarch to Kansas City in 100 years.
It went largely unnoticed last October when Alexandre Grimaldi, the son of Monaco’s Prince Albert II, was at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium for the Chiefs-Commanders game.
Grimaldi apparently was a guest of the Hunt family, but his appearance in Kansas City didn’t generate many headlines here.
But when Netherlands King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima arrive Saturday to watch Curaçao play against Ecuador at Kansas City Stadium (née Arrowhead), it will be big news.
“It is an extra-special World Cup because we have both the Netherlands and Curaçao,” Willem-Alexander said, per RTL-TV. “So we have twice as many teams to cheer for.
“A great opportunity to cheer on both the Blues and the Oranges. All in all, it will be a special World Cup for me with two teams, and I naturally hope they go extremely far.”
The King and Queen will start Saturday rooting for the Netherlands in its match against Sweden in Houston. They will then travel to Kansas City to see Curaçao, which is part of the Dutch Kingdom.
The royal couple has three daughters: Princesses Amalia, Alexia and Ariane. They’re apparently big soccer fans, too.
The King and Queen might not be alone: “And who knows, maybe some daughters,” Willem-Alexander said, per Town & Country. He noted their daughters have been following the lead-up to the tournament closely.
The last Royal visit
It is believed that Saturday’s royal visit will be the first time in 100 years that a sitting monarch has stopped in Kansas City. While King Gustav XVI of Sweden made a quick stop in Lindsborg, Kansas in 1976, he didn’t travel through Kansas City.
When the Liberty Memorial was dedicated in 1926, Queen Anne of Romania was among the dignitaries to attend the ceremony. She had traveled throughout much of the country ahead of the dedication, and said a few words, as the Kansas City Journal noted.
“I bring you greeting from the name of the king in my country to your city as I have already brought to many towns in the United States,” Queen Anne said. “I am full of emotion at the thought that I will be the one who will lay the first wreath on your monument. I do it in loving remembrance of those for whom it was erected. ...
“May this moment never be forgotten. It will be a day of remembrance to you as it will be for me. When I see the wonderful monument we have built, I think of the great sacrifice of all those who are not here today to rejoice with us.”
Lest you think that royal visit had no connection to sports, Queen Marie was accompanied by her children, Prince Nicholas and Princess Ileana. After touring the city and admiring the boulevards and parks with dear ol’ mom, Nicholas and Ileana made a bet on the Army-Navy football game, the Journal said.
Nicholas took Navy to win. Alas, it was a push as the sides played to a 21-21 tie in Chicago.
This story was originally published June 19, 2026 at 9:00 AM.
