John McGinn texted the future King of England after winning the Europa League and told him to get his credit card out. That is where Aston Villa are in 2025 – and it is absolutely brilliant.
Villa defeated Freiburg 3-0 in Istanbul on Wednesday night to end a 44-year wait for European silverware, and Prince William – who was in the dressing room before kick-off and in the stands for every extraordinary minute of it – was on the receiving end of McGinn’s finest post-match banter shortly afterwards.
McGinn Asked the Future King to Pick Up the Tab
Speaking to TNT Sports after the final whistle, McGinn was asked about William’s presence in Istanbul. The Villa captain did not hold back. “He is a classy guy,” McGinn said. “He is a massive Villa fan so he was never going to miss it. He is just a normal guy. It’s great to have his support and hopefully it continues and tonight he can have a couple of drinks with us and maybe get his credit card out at the end of the night.”
What makes it even better is that this is not a new joke – it is a running gag. McGinn had already quipped along similar lines when Villa reached the semi-finals, and the fact he followed through with a direct text to William after the trophy was lifted tells you everything about the relaxed, genuinely warm dynamic between the two. This is not a man performing respect for a royal patron. This is a captain winding up someone he actually knows.
The pair’s rapport stretches back to 2019, when McGinn sat down with William for the FA’s Heads Up mental health campaign – a proper conversation that clearly formed a real connection, not the usual stiff PR exercise. Six years on, McGinn is texting him at midnight asking him to open his wallet. Unai Emery has built a trophy-winning squad, but he has also apparently built a dressing room relaxed enough that its captain will cheerfully banter the heir to the throne.
William Broke Royal Ranks – and Meant Every Word of It
Prince William’s response on social media was notably personal, even by his own standards. Posted from the official Prince and Princess of Wales account and signed with a “W” – something royal correspondents noted he reserves for events of genuine personal significance – the message read: “Amazing night!! Huge congratulations to all the players, team, staff and everyone connected to the club. 44 years since the last taste of European silverware!”
He went further, adding a specific shout-out to injured midfielder Boubacar Kamara: “Special shout out to Boubacar Kamara who has been out injured but is such an integral part of our team and helped lay the foundations of this success.” That detail matters. That is not a message written by a communications team. That is a man who watches games, knows his squad, and feels the result in his chest.
Broadcaster footage from Istanbul showed William punching the air at full time, hugging supporters around him, visibly mouthing “unbelievable” as the final whistle confirmed the trophy. This is what Villa Park on a European night feels like bottled and exported to Turkey – and the 43-year-old royal was every inch the supporter rather than the dignitary.
Forty-Four Years. What Emery Has Actually Built.
It is worth pausing on what this trophy represents beyond the McGinn texts and the royal celebrations. The last time Aston Villa lifted European silverware was 1982 – the European Cup and Super Cup under Tony Barton. Two years before that triumph, Unai Emery took charge of a club sitting just above the relegation zone with the wreckage of the Steven Gerrard era fresh in everyone’s minds.
What followed has been one of the most remarkable managerial transformations in Premier League history. From 14th-place finishers to Europa League champions. From survival anxiety to standing in Istanbul holding a trophy in front of a travelling end that has barely been able to believe what it has been watching. Tielemans in the 40th minute, Buendia on the stroke of half time with a curling effort from the edge of the area, Rogers sealing it before the hour – Villa never looked like losing this final. They won it with authority.
McGinn, signed from Hibernian for around £2.75m back in 2018, has been at the centre of every chapter of this story. More than 250 Villa appearances. A long-term contract extension signed in November 2025. The captain who texts the Prince of Wales after winning European trophies. Some bargain.
What Comes Next – and Who Is Watching
The Europa League trophy does not just sit in the cabinet – it opens the door to the Champions League, which is where all roads lead now for Emery and Villa. The questions about squad depth, fixture congestion, and retention of key players will come fast. Villa’s summer transfer activity is already drawing serious attention, and the calibre of player the club can now recruit has shifted considerably off the back of this win.
William, meanwhile, will presumably be at Villa Park for every European night next season – and if the run goes deep into the knockout stages, the McGinn credit card jokes will only get more expensive. For a club that spent four decades without a European trophy, that is a wonderful problem to have.
Forty-four years. One text message. Get the card out, William – Villa have earned it.
