The Royal Family Just Shared Prince Harry’s Full Cricket World Cup Opening Speech

Prince Harry took a break from the royal norm today and opened the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup tournament in London.

In addition to meeting with young people who love cricket (hey, that could be Archie one day!) and chatting with schoolchildren, the 34-year-old Duke of Sussex marked the occasion with a speech.

And since we weren’t there to see it (sigh), we were happy to find that the royal family shared the full speech transcription online.

“Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, fans here and around the world, welcome to the Oval for the opening game of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2019,” Prince Harry began.

He highlighted England’s history with the ICC World Cricket Cup, saying, “The first ever cricket World Cup took place in England in 1975 and I’m delighted that the UK will once again play host to this wonderful global sporting event featuring ten incredible teams who, thanks to the UK’s cultural diversity, will feel as though they are competing in front of a home crowd every time they take to the field.” (Nine of the ten are Commonwealth countries, hence the “home crowd” reference.)

Harry then went on to up the excitement ante: “Cities across England and Wales will come alive over the next six weeks as World Cup fever sweeps the nation once more and I am sure that the players will show their appreciation with some fantastic performances and great sportsmanship.”

Of course, he wished the teams good luck and thanked everyone involved in making the tournament come to life.

Then, just like that, he opened the games by saying, “Here’s to a brilliant six weeks of sport. Trust me, you won’t want to miss any of it. I am now honored to declare the ICC Mens Cricket World Cup 2019 in England and Wales—OPEN!”

Short and sweet. Just how a speech should be.

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