The Duke of Cambridge penned a sweet tribute to Jill Scott MBE as she announced her retirement from football.

Prince William wrote a personal message to England women’s footballer, Jill on social media, in response to her tweet officially confirming her retirement.

In his message, the Duke described the Lioness as, “a pioneer of Women’s football and a great team player.”

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Prince William receiving football shirts from the Lionesses for Prince Louis, Princess Charlotte and Prince George featuring their ages.

He offered his, “congratulations on a wonderful career,” and said it had been “a pleasure to get to know,” the legendary footballer.

Prince William ended the post with a private joke, saying that he was a, “tiny bit pleased there won’t be any more slide tackles during ‘friendly’ kickabouts…”

The comment appeared to refer to a charity match they had played together 10 years ago in which midfielder Jill slipped and side-tackled the Duke, and he had reportedly joked that the move warranted a yellow card.

“The running joke whenever he sees us is, ‘No yellow cards this tournament Jill!’,” she told The Mirror in July, ahead of the Lionesses historic win at the Euros.

Before the event, Prince William and Princess Charlotte shared a video wishing luck to the team, with Princess Charlotte saying sweetly, “good luck, I hope you win. Bye!”

Jill referenced the team’s victory at the Euros in her own post, saying she was leaving the sport “with a gold medal swinging around my neck.”

The football legend received an MBE in 2020 and Prince William sent her a handwritten letter in congratulations.