LONDON (AFP) - Britain's Queen Elizabeth II has secretly been a lifelong supporter of English Premiership football giants Arsenal, The Sun newspaper said Monday.
"Her Majesty has been fond of Arsenal for over 50 years," a senior royal source told the tabloid, adding that Queen Elizabeth, the queen mother was also fond of the north London club.
"Her late mother was a self-confessed Gooner, due largely to her admiration of their former player Denis Compton," the source said.
The monarch has presented a string of top football trophies, including the 1966 World Cup, but her club allegiance had never been revealed until now.
The Sun printed a mock-up picture of how the monarch would look in a Gunners scarf and with a red-and-white home jersey pulled over an evening dress.
The sovereign, who turned 81 on Saturday, hosted Arsenal players and officials at Buckingham Palace in February to make up for her having to forfeit opening their new Emirates Stadium last November due to a bad back.
"It seems the queen follows football and she told us she was an Arsenal fan," the Gunners' Spain midfielder Francesc Fabregas, 19, was quoted as saying.
"She appeared to definitely know who I was and we exchanged a few special words."
As the crow flies, Chelsea is the nearest club to Buckingham Palace, the queen's official London residence.
However, the queen considers Windsor Castle, west of London, to be her home -- which would make lowly Wycombe Wanderers and Brentford her nearest league clubs.
The first match the queen attended was the 1953 FA Cup final. The game is considered an all-time classic and was dubbed the "Matthews Final" after legendary England winger Stanley Matthews, who inspired Blackpool to come from behind to beat Bolton Wanderers 4-3.
Arsenal count Queen Elizabeth's youngest grandson Prince Harry among their fans and were indeed called Royal Arsenal between 1886 and 1891.
Queen Elizabeth, the queen mother, who died in 2002, revealed her love of Arsenal to a schoolboy in 1955.
Chatting about Compton, an England football and cricket international, she said: "I'm an Arsenal supporter! Didn't you know?"
Harry's brother Prince William, second in line to the throne, supports Aston Villa. He is the president of the Football Association, English football's governing body.
"Her late mother was a self-confessed Gooner, due largely to her admiration of their former player Denis Compton," the source said.
The monarch has presented a string of top football trophies, including the 1966 World Cup, but her club allegiance had never been revealed until now.
The Sun printed a mock-up picture of how the monarch would look in a Gunners scarf and with a red-and-white home jersey pulled over an evening dress.
The sovereign, who turned 81 on Saturday, hosted Arsenal players and officials at Buckingham Palace in February to make up for her having to forfeit opening their new Emirates Stadium last November due to a bad back.
"It seems the queen follows football and she told us she was an Arsenal fan," the Gunners' Spain midfielder Francesc Fabregas, 19, was quoted as saying.
"She appeared to definitely know who I was and we exchanged a few special words."
As the crow flies, Chelsea is the nearest club to Buckingham Palace, the queen's official London residence.
However, the queen considers Windsor Castle, west of London, to be her home -- which would make lowly Wycombe Wanderers and Brentford her nearest league clubs.
The first match the queen attended was the 1953 FA Cup final. The game is considered an all-time classic and was dubbed the "Matthews Final" after legendary England winger Stanley Matthews, who inspired Blackpool to come from behind to beat Bolton Wanderers 4-3.
Arsenal count Queen Elizabeth's youngest grandson Prince Harry among their fans and were indeed called Royal Arsenal between 1886 and 1891.
Queen Elizabeth, the queen mother, who died in 2002, revealed her love of Arsenal to a schoolboy in 1955.
Chatting about Compton, an England football and cricket international, she said: "I'm an Arsenal supporter! Didn't you know?"
Harry's brother Prince William, second in line to the throne, supports Aston Villa. He is the president of the Football Association, English football's governing body.
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