Prince Harry addressed the reasons behind his choice to wear a Los Angeles Dodgers hat while attending Game 4 of the World Series between the Dodgers and the Toronto Blue Jays, humorously dubbing the situation “hat-gate.”
During an appearance, Harry apologized to Canada, saying, “Firstly, I would like to apologize to Canada for wearing it. Secondly, I was under duress.” He explained that he was invited to the Dodgers’ box by the owner himself, Mark Walter, and felt it was polite to wear the team’s hat while there. “There wasn’t much choice. I was invited to the LA Dodgers’ box by the dugout by the owner himself, so I was doing what I thought was the polite thing to do,” he added. Harry reassured fans by promising, “But I’m going to wear [this Blue Jays hat] from now on to make sure I don’t make any more of those mistakes.”
Meghan Markle, Harry’s wife, 44, who is a native of California, accompanied him to the game. The couple and their two children, Prince Archie, 6, and Princess Lilibet, 4, share a home in the Montecito area of Santa Barbara.
Harry also joked that another reason for wearing the Dodgers hat was to conceal his hair loss under the bright stadium lights. He said, “The other piece of this was… when you’re missing a lot of hair on top and you’re sitting under floodlights, you’ll take any hat that’s available.”
He went on to declare his true allegiance, sharing, “So Game 5, Game 6, Game 7, I was Blue Jays throughout.” Acknowledging the potential fallout from admitting this, Harry remarked, “Now that I’ve admitted that, it’s going to be really hard for me to return to Los Angeles.”
Expressing his support for the Canadian team, he said, “No, I’m very sorry to the Canadian public. Devastated that the Blue Jays lost, but go Jays.”
Photos from Game 4 showed Harry and Meghan cheering, with Meghan wearing a matching blue Los Angeles Dodgers hat. However, Harry was not seen wearing the hat in videos capturing the couple walking to their suite at Dodger Stadium.
Harry and Meghan relocated to California after stepping back from their roles in the British royal family in 2020. Earlier in the week, Harry made a solo trip to Canada to participate in several events commemorating Remembrance Day in Toronto, an observance similar to Veterans Day in the U.S., held annually on November 11.
The couple has spent significant time in Toronto during their early relationship, notably while Meghan was filming the TV series “Suits.”
The World Series concluded in heartbreak for the Blue Jays. Despite holding a 3-2 series lead and securing victories in Games 4 and 5 at Dodger Stadium, Toronto ultimately lost Game 7 at home. Will Smith’s home run in the 11th inning sealed a 5-4 victory for the Dodgers, handing them the championship.
https://nypost.com/2025/11/07/sports/prince-harry-claims-he-was-under-duress-in-dodgers-hat-controversy/
