Prince William was left in tears (Image: Shutterstock)

Prince William was left in tears as Aston Villaended their 30-year trophy drought with 3-0 win over Freiburg in Europa League final in Istanbul.

Unai Emery guided Villa to their first European triumph since the club’s famous 1982 European Cup success.

Goals from Youri Tielemans, Emi Buendia and Morgan Rogers sealed a memorable night for the Midlands club, with skipper John McGinn becoming just the second Aston Villa captain to lift a major European trophy.

After the game, William posted on X: “Amazing night!! Huge congratulations to all the players, team,staff and everyone connected to the club! 44 years since the last taste of European silverware!

“Special shout out to Boubacar Kamara who has been out injured but is such an integral part of our team and helped lay the foundations of this success. UTV! VTID W”

And club captain John McGinn addressed Prince William’s support in a post-match interview on TNT Sports, saying he was just a “normal guy” to meet and that he hoped they would celebrate together later, joking that he hoped the future king would “get his credit card out to pay for a few drinks”.

Prince William was supporting in the crowd (Image: Getty)

Villa dominated the final from start to finish at Besiktas Park, overwhelming a Freiburg side appearing in the first European final in their history.

Morgan Rogers produced a star display and made history by becoming the youngest player to both score and assist in a Europa League final.

The triumph also delivered Emery a record-extending fifth Europa League title, further enhancing his remarkable reputation in the competition after previous successes with Sevilla and Villarreal.

Villa fans celebrated wildly at the final whistle, while lifelong supporter Prince William was among those spotted enjoying the historic victory in Istanbul.

The future king was very happy (Image: Getty)

The result capped a stunning rise under Emery, who has transformed Villa from relegation candidates into European trophy winners since arriving at Villa Park in 2022.

Aston Villa had already secured Champions League football through their Premier League finish, but Europa League glory marked the club’s biggest achievement in decades and underlined Emery’s growing legacy in Birmingham.