Kylie Kelce apologizes to Kate Middleton — and she is doing it with her trademark charm. On the Thursday, October 1 episode of her hit podcast Not Gonna Lie, the 34-year-old host revisited her recent invitation for the Princess of Wales to appear on the show. She also corrected the way she addressed the royal last week.
“I love learning, so I was unaware that calling Princess Catherine, Princess Kate was offensive,” Kylie said on the episode, according to PEOPLE. “I didn’t know that. Now I know that. Now I will proceed accordingly. I apologize for the mistake.”
She added: “I would like to refer to people in the most respectful way and how they feel respected.” Then she spoke to the royal directly. “Princess Catherine or the Princess of Wales, I apologize,” she said. “I will get that sorted immediately starting now.”
What Sparked the Kylie Kelce Kate Middleton Apology
The whole thing started with a compliment. On the September 24 episode, Kylie praised the Princess of Wales for showing off her field hockey skills at a recent royal engagement. Then she extended a public invitation. “Princess Kate, Duchess of Cambridge, if you ever wanted to come on and chitchat about some field hockey and maybe kids,” she said. “I don’t know. We got a couple things in common.” The moment was covered widely at the time.
She even beat the sports purists to the punch. “For everyone in the comments who are about to correct me: I’m aware that she’s actually playing the Scottish sport of shinty,” Kylie joked. “I’m still calling it a win for field hockey. Where do you think she got that skill?”
She also pointed to the family connection between the two households. “Our husbands chitchatted on the other podcast,” she said. That was a nod to Prince William’s surprise July appearance on New Heights. The hit show is hosted by her husband, retired NFL star Jason Kelce, and his brother Travis Kelce.
The Royal Title Kylie Got Wrong
So what exactly needed correcting? The royal’s formal style is Catherine, Princess of Wales. She is formally referred to as the Princess of Wales. Kylie now says she will use “Princess Catherine” or “the Princess of Wales” going forward.
The Kate-versus-Catherine debate is far from new, however. Back in 2008, two years before Prince William proposed, the future Princess of Wales reportedly emailed close friends with a request. She asked them to call her Catherine rather than the more informal Kate, according to royal biographer Robert Jobson. Even so, the world has called her Kate Middleton for more than two decades. PEOPLE notes it keeps the name in headlines so readers can easily find its coverage.
Kylie Also Promises to Tone Down the Cursing
Kylie Kelce’s apology to Kate Middleton came with a bonus concession. A commenter had written that “Princess Catherine is too refined and beautiful to be subjected to your cursing.” The commenter told Kylie she would need to clean up her act. The podcast host agreed. “First of all, you’re correct. Agreed,” she said.
But she also made it clear she knows how to read a room. “Would I curse at her face? No,” Kylie said. “I love a curse word. I love it so, so much. But at the end of the day, I am respectful of the situations that I am put in.”
She also stressed that the invitation comes with zero pressure. “I don’t think that anybody owes me anything,” she said. “Let me emphasize that. I would love to speak to the Princess of Wales. She is an incredible woman. She has children. She played field hockey. She battled cancer. There are so many things that I would love to speak to her about.”
Then came the reality check. “Do I think she has time to hop on this podcast? No, I do not. I don’t think that,” she admitted.
Why This Kylie Kelce Apology Is Taking Off
For one thing, the Kelce-royal crossover keeps getting bigger. Prince William’s New Heights appearance in July was a genuine pop-culture moment. The future king had also brought Prince George and Princess Charlotte backstage at Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour stop in London in June 2024. Swift is Kylie’s sister-in-law, which makes the whole web of connections even more fun to follow.
For another, Not Gonna Lie has become a genuine powerhouse. The show won a Webby Award in May. Kylie has also landed huge guests, including former First Lady Michelle Obama, Sandra Bullock, Jennifer Garner, Kelly Clarkson, and Hilary Duff. A royal guest would be the ultimate booking.
As a result, the apology is landing exactly as Kylie surely hoped. It reads as a self-aware, good-natured moment rather than a controversy. Meanwhile, royal watchers get a fresh reminder of how intertwined the monarchy and American pop culture have become — from palace engagements to football podcasts.
Will the Princess of Wales ever take Kylie up on the offer? Probably not. But the invitation alone has given fans on both sides of the Atlantic something to smile about. And if Kate ever does say yes, at least the cursing will be under control.