The Prince of Wales previously joked that he was "hoping" to receive an invitation to the nuptials, fueling speculation that he and Princess Kate might attend
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():format(jpeg)/prince-william-kate-taylor-travis-063026-9797c134bdd5429c8b13d26139a51518.jpg "Prince William, Prince of Wales and Catherine, Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift")
Credit: Samir Hussein/WireImage; Kevin Mazur/Getty
NEED TO KNOW
- Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s wedding won’t have Kate Middleton and Prince William among the guests
- The Prince of Wales previously teased “there might be an invitation around” to the highly anticipated wedding, prompting speculation about their attendance
- Swift and Kelce posed with Prince William and two of his children when they attended her tour stop in London
Prince William and Kate Middleton won't be among the star-studded guests at Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce's wedding after all.
PEOPLE understands that the Prince and Princess of Wales will not attend the couple's upcoming nuptials, ending weeks of speculation that intensified after William playfully hinted he was hoping for an invitation.
The question came up during the Prince of Wales' appearance on Heart Breakfast in May, when co-host Amanda Holden asked whether he had received an invite to Swift and Kelce's wedding.
"No comment," William replied with a smile, prompting laughter in the studio.
"I'm hoping, and I'm sure there might be an invitation around, but we'll see," he added, fueling chatter that he and Kate, both 44, could make a surprise appearance at what is expected to be one of the biggest celebrity weddings of the year.
Prince William also said on the show that his children Princess Charlotte, 11, and Prince Louis, 8, were big fans of Swift, and that Charlotte, especially, was "obsessed."
While the Prince and Princess of Wales won't be attending the nuptials, the friendship between the future king and the global pop superstar stretches back more than a decade.
William first met Swift in 2013 at the Centrepoint Winter Whites Gala at Kensington Palace, where the pair famously joined Jon Bon Jovi onstage for an impromptu rendition of "Livin' on a Prayer."
More recently, Prince William celebrated his 42nd birthday by taking Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis to Swift's Eras Tour stop at Wembley Stadium in June 2024. The royal dad memorably danced in the stands to "Shake It Off."
After the show, Swift shared a backstage selfie with William, George and Charlotte, while Kelce also posed with the royal family in another photo that quickly went viral.
"Happy Bday M8! London shows are off to a splendid start," the pop superstar wrote below the picture, tagging Prince William and Princess Kate's handle along with a string of Union Jack flag, American flag and handshake emojis.
The warm exchange underscored the friendly bond between the royal family and the superstar couple, making the possibility of a wedding invitation all the more intriguing for royal watchers.
Ultimately, however, the Prince and Princess of Wales will not be making the trip as Swift and Kelce prepare to celebrate their big day.
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Swift and Kelce, both 36, announced their engagement in August 2025 after two years of dating, and their buzzed-about nuptials have been likened to America's version of a royal wedding.
"It’s joy, bottled and broadcast," PEOPLE's Senior Royals Editor Erin Hill previously wrote about the expected celebration. "Just like Kate and William brought us unity in 2011, or Meghan and Harry gave us a fresh infusion of fairy tale in 2018, Taylor and Travis could give us the kind of glittering love story that feels big enough to belong to everyone."