Prince Harry Suddenly Interrupted James Corden Over One Unexpected Word During A World Cup Conversation — And The Brief Exchange Has Since Become One Of The Most Talked-About Moments From Their Interview

Prince Harry Calls Out James Corden Over “Soccer” in Hilarious Post-World Cup Chat

Even after years of living under the California sun, some British habits die hard. Prince Harry proved just that during a recent appearance on After Hours with James Corden, where he wasted no time pulling his fellow Brit up short over a very American linguistic slip-up.

Appearing on the show following the World Cup final on Sunday, July 19, the Duke of Sussex sat down with Corden and English football legend Rio Ferdinand to break down all the tournament’s biggest moments. But the conversation briefly derailed into friendly banter when Corden dropped the S-word.

As Corden teased the 41-year-old royal about whether he played sports growing up—quipping, “I always thought that you went to a school that was too posh for soccer”—Harry immediately hit the brakes.

“Too posh to play football,” Harry corrected him with a look of mock disbelief. “Why are you calling it soccer?”

Corden’s defense was instant and unapologetic: “Because we’re in the United States, baby!”

From Prep School Glory to the “E Team”

Despite the terminology debate, Harry reminisced about his own schoolboy athletic days, admitting his sporting trajectory took a sharp downward turn as he got older.

“You know what, in prep school, I was in the first team. And then I went to the bigger school, and I ended up in the E team,” he recalled with a laugh. “A team, down to the E team. So that didn’t feel very good.”

Weighing In on England’s Heartbreak

The lighthearted chat also touched on heavier sports grief, specifically England’s crushing last-minute semifinal loss to Argentina on July 15. The Three Lions had led 1-0 until the dying minutes of the match before Argentina pulled off a stunning comeback to eliminate England just shy of the final.

Analyzing the tactical collapse, Harry didn’t hold back his assessment: “I think it’s a mindset. I think that what we saw was a slight shock value for the team.”

“We’re 1-nil up against Argentina, and then there was this immediate temptation to fall into defense… I don’t think that was the plan. It just happened. And you can’t, in 75 minutes, however long it was, try to defend a 1-0 lead against a team like that,” he added, prompting Ferdinand to jokingly invite the prince onto his own podcast to break down the tactics.

The Ultimate Ranking of U.K. “Harrys”

To cap off the appearance, Harry gamely participated in the show’s ongoing debate to rank the United Kingom’s top public figures named Harry. Despite protesting a “conflict of interest,” he played along to crown pop royalty Harry Styles with the top spot.

“Great shout!” Corden cheered.

England striker Harry Kane claimed the runner-up position despite the team’s World Cup exit, while Prince Harry humorously settled for a tie for third place alongside fictional wizard Harry Potter.

“And we’ll have a Quidditch off,” the prince joked, bringing down the house.

Do you stand with Prince Harry on keeping it “football,” or has living stateside made “soccer” a permanent part of your vocabulary?