The Duchess of Cambridge is teaming up with tennis star Roger Federer to raise money for disadvantaged and vulnerable children. The duo’s charitable collaboration will support Action for Children and the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA), whose charitable arm is the LTA Tennis Foundation. The royal mom of three is patron of Action for Children and the Lawn Tennis Association. All proceeds raised from tickets to the Laver Cup Open Practice Day next month will be split between the two charities.
The Open Practice Day on Sept. 22 at The O2 will give fans the opportunity to watch Roger practice, as well as other Team Europe and Team World stars. Ahead of the Open Practice Day, the Laver Cup—a three-day team competition—will host a day of tennis in East London. Kate and Roger are both scheduled to attend. The day of tennis will provide children ages 8-15 with a “memorable” tennis experience while the Laver Cup is in London.
The Laver Cup, which Roger co-founded, is “committed to supporting community initiatives impacting young people in each city it visits and the collaboration with Action for Children and the LTA was initiated by a recommendation from The Duchess,” per a Kensington Palace release. “Her Royal Highness is passionate about supporting grassroots tennis and encouraging young people from all backgrounds to become involved in the sport.”
Kate, who is a regular at Wimbledon, is an avid tennis fan. Her eldest son Prince George has even played the sport with Roger, who happens to be her mother Carole Middleton’s “heartthrob.”
Back in 2019, Roger spoke about playing tennis with George and the Prince’s technique. He said, “At that stage it’s all about just touch the ball, it’s already good. Same with my boys. I think I have a little advantage that I actually spent some time, you know, with him.”
Roger added, “He’s a cute boy and I love to see that they’re into tennis, so into sports. Definitely, you know, his mom’s always enjoyed their tennis, you know, and that’s it. And I hope that he’ll still say the same in a few years’ time.”