The Royal Family are ‘very much welcome’ at the Duke of Sussex’s Invictus Games in 2027, the event’s chief executive said.
The statement comes after the Mail on Sunday exclusively revealed that Montecito-based Prince Harry, 40, is to extend an olive branch to his family by inviting them to the event, which will take place in Birmingham.
When asked whether members of the ruling family are due to attend, Helen Helliwell told People, ‘We’d be delighted if members of the royal family were able to attend and would very much welcome their presence in a couple of years.’
Should they accept the invitation, it would mark the first time members of the Royal Family have attended the Invictus Games since its inception in 2014.
Harry founded Invictus with the support of his father, King Charles and brother Prince William, as well as other senior royals, to support and encourage wounded military personnel.
Helliwell added that she would be similarly pleased if Harry and Meghan attend the event in two years.
‘We will be delighted if they come over for the year out and for the Games,’ Helen said, adding, ‘We are so far out it’s impossible for one individual to confirm their plans, but we would be delighted if the Duke were able to come.’
Reports from The Telegraph claimed that Harry sent an email invitation to Charles and other senior royals last month, which will be followed by a formal invitation at a later date.
The Royal Family are ‘very much welcome’ at the Duke of Sussex’s upcoming Invictus Games in 2027, the event’s chief executive, Helen Helliwell, said (pictured: Prince William, King Charles, and Prince Harry in 2018)
Sources said the timing of the invitation was designed to give the family the best possible chance of attending, given that Charles is known to draw up his schedule up to three years in advance.
But the extraordinary move, which could see Harry pictured with the Royal Family for the first time since the late Queen’s funeral, has raised eyebrows among some commentators.
Ingrid Seward said: ‘The King might attend to show support for the Armed Forces and congratulate Harry on the most significant success in his life.
‘The only reason the King is wary of associating with his son is that he no longer trusts him not to repeat their private conversations as he has done in the past. This goes for all the working members of the family.’
Fellow royal commentator Katie Nicholl added: ‘The King absolutely wants a relationship with his youngest son and with his grandchildren.
He has an incredible capacity for forgiveness and he wants to be magnanimous in all of this and therefore there’s certainly a possibility that the King might consider attending Invictus.’
Despite the Royals’ previously strong support for Invictus, the invitation – should anyone choose to accept it – is likely to cause some headaches for Royal aides as it involves a major scheduling conflict.
The Games are set to open at Birmingham’s NEC on July 12, 2027, and will conclude on July 17 – the day Queen Camilla turns 80 – for which there are likely to already be some celebrations planned.
Helliwell also stated that she’d be ‘delighted’ if Harry and Meghan make an appearance at the event, which will take place in Birmingham (seen at an Invictus Games event in Canada, 2024)
Pictured: Prince Harry at the Invictus Games Foundation 10th Anniversary Service at St Paul’s Cathedral on May 8, 2024
It also remains to be seen whether the Duke would risk bringing Meghan and their children Archie, six, and four-year-old Lilibet, to the UK for the event, having previously insisted he could not do so unless the family were offered ‘full police protection’.
‘Harry has agreed that Invictus should extend an invitation to his family,’ a source told The Mail on Sunday.
‘Invictus hopes the Royal Family will come along to support the wounded veterans taking part. Harry is hopeful his father will set aside their differences to attend the Invictus Games and support veterans.
‘The Royals have always been hugely supportive of Invictus and proud of what Harry has achieved in that arena. This is one olive branch from him which might be reciprocated.’
Harry made it clear in a BBC interview in May that he would welcome a rapprochement with his father and with the wider family, despite acknowledging the hurt caused by his brutally honest memoir, Spare.
‘There’s no point in continuing to fight any more,’ he said. ‘Life is precious.’ He added: ‘Forgiveness is 100 per cent a possibility because I would like to get my father and brother back.’
The Invictus invitations are thought to represent the first time Harry has publicly reached out in a bid to gather his family together.
The invitees and the wording of the invitations are said to have been approved by Harry, with the emails being sent to private secretaries at the Palace.
Prince Harry (pictured at the 2025 Invictus Games) is to extend an olive branch to the Royal Family by inviting them to the 2027 Invictus Games, the Mail on Sunday revealed
Sources said the timing of the invitation was designed to give the family the best possible chance of attending. Pictured: Prince William, Queen Camilla, King Charles, and Prince Harry attend the Opening Ceremony of the Invictus Games at Olympic Park in 2014 in London
The Games are expected to bring significant economic and social benefit to Birmingham.
A spokesman for Invictus said in June: ‘No formal invitations have been issued as preparations are in the early stages.’
It comes after insiders claimed that Harry and Meghan’s children will not be given official roles when Prince William becomes King.
Prince Archie, six, and Princess Lilibet, four, currently live with their parents in Montecito, California.
Last month, insiders claimed to The Guardian that Harry wanted Archie and Lilibet to have HRH titles so when they are adults they retain the chance to become working royals, should they wish.
However, a report published in The Times suggested that such a plan has sparked ‘bemusement in royal circles’, while William ‘doesn’t talk about his brother’ at all anymore.
Citing insiders, it adds: ‘Under the next reign, roles for Archie and Lili as working royals are unlikely.’
Archie and Lili have grown up away from the rest of the royal family and glimpses of them shared by Meghan on Instagram have shown they have American accents.
Former actress Meghan has started to share more and more frequent glimpses into the lives of her children – for example, filming them making Valentine’s Day treats together and sharing photos on their birthdays.
On their birth certificates, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s children are Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor and Lilibet Diana Mountbatten-Windsor.
However, the Guardian report claimed Harry and Meghan feared their children’s UK passports were being held up due to the inclusion of their HRH titles – and that they even considered changing their surname to ‘Spencer’ – a nod to Princess Diana – as a result.
At the time, when asked if there was any objection from Charles or aides to the passports being issued with the HRH titles, a Buckingham Palace spokesman said: ‘No’, but declined to comment further.
The Sussexes’ use of HRH has proved highly controversial because the couple are said to have reassured the Queen that they would not use the title after they emigrated to the US.
