
News outlets have been reporting that Prince William might have accidently let the gender of his third baby “slip”.
The Prince was at a Championship match between Aston Villa and Cardiff City when, in the 85th minute, Jack Grealish scored a goal, clinching the Aston Villa win; shortly after, the Prince made a comment about his baby, which is due in a few weeks.
According to The Mirror, he told fans:
I’m going to insist the baby is called Jack… or Jackie.
A number of news outlets have reported that this is a massive “hint” that the baby will be a boy
Prince William drops huge hint on baby gender - saying he wants to name third child after football player… https://t.co/YRVjuLF4HE— Mirror Football (@Mirror Football) 1523513408
Did Prince William just ACCIDENTALLY reveal the gender of the Royal Baby that will be born later this month?!… https://t.co/FMWkftt7Ut— 103.7 KISS FM (@103.7 KISS FM) 1523585221
And even that it’s “proof” of his gender.
Is THIS the proof Kate Middleton is having a BOY? Prince William drops MAJOR hint about royal baby at Aston Villa m… https://t.co/ZsSaKTTw7G— Daily Express (@Daily Express) 1523520350
In fact, bets have shifted from the baby being a girl, to a boy. Betfair suspended the ‘Sex of Royal Baby’ market after a four-figure bet was made on the baby being a boy.
The favourite name for the baby is now ‘Arthur’ at 5/1, with previous favourites having been Mary and Alice.
Some people have called it 'sexist' to suggest that the baby is a boy based on the assumption that it'll be named after a footballer.
@MirrorFootball I was sure I heard the results of the Women's FA Cup semi-finals (well done Chelsea and Arsenal Lad… https://t.co/x8LT8XzO66— Alan Crowe (@Alan Crowe) 1523823836
@MirrorFootball Really sexist to assume all footballers are men!— Deadly Headshot (@Deadly Headshot) 1523806261
@HuffPost I do believe there are some quite famous female soccer players......— Marion Schuller (@Marion Schuller) 1523575094
@MirrorFootball Of course, women don’t play football.— Nasty, brutish and short (@Nasty, brutish and short) 1523815441
Others suggested female footballers that the baby could be named after.
@MirrorFootball How about Aoife Mannion or Ellen White @BCLFC? Or Steph Houghton @englandlioness? 👍— Carol Brady MBE (@Carol Brady MBE) 1523803837
Stephanie as in Stephanie Houghton who captained the England Ladies team in the 2015 World Cup? Cool. https://t.co/O4veJ6JO1t— Jolyon Maoam QC (@Jolyon Maoam QC) 1523794036
@MirrorFootball How is that a hint? He might want to name her after @CaseyStoney, @frankirby, @jillscottjs8… ?— Adrian Clark is 😷 (@Adrian Clark is 😷) 1523795925
But not everyone thought the assumption was sexist.
They argued that Prince William ‘slipped up’ by saying he wanted to call his child ‘Jack’, a traditionally male name, and tagged ‘Jackie’ on at the end in an effort to cover it up.
@adrianclark @MirrorFootball @CaseyStoney @frankirby @JillScottJS8 The article that says he wants to call it Jack...— kate (@kate) 1523808483
@adrianclark @MirrorFootball @CaseyStoney @frankirby @JillScottJS8 Again did you read the article? The whole point… https://t.co/8yLun8gbY4— kate (@kate) 1523808793