Prince William in Rio at start of Brazil visit for COP30 and Earthshot Prize

The Prince of Wales was handed the keys to Rio de Janeiro as he began a five-day visit to Brazil.

Prince William was on the city's Sugarloaf Mountain, with a bird's eye view of the iconic Christ the Redeemer statue, as he received the award from the city's mayor, Eduardo Paes.

The prince took a cable car to the top of the mountain, to the surprise of several groups of tourists queuing to climb the mountain. When he came back down, he posed for a selfie with several people who were waiting to catch a glimpse of him.

He is visiting Brazil for the first time on two key environmental missions. On Wednesday he will present the Earthshot Prize, an annual award to the charity he founded.

The next day he will travel to Belem, in the Amazon rainforest, where he will deliver a speech as part of COP30, the annual UN climate meeting where governments discuss how to limit and prepare for further climate change.

This is the first time Prince William has traveled internationally for the COP summit since his father, King Charles, previously led the royal family by delivering keynote speeches to world leaders over several years.

Prince William attended the 2021 awards ceremony in Glasgow with his father, two weeks after the inaugural Earthshot Prize.

The Prize awards £1 million in grants annually across five different categories to projects aimed at restoring the world's climate. Prince William has been dedicating himself to this cause for 10 years, and Rio de Janeiro is an intermediate stage in this project.

This year's shortlist includes a recycled skyscraper in Sydney, the entire island of Barbados and a Bristol company that filters microplastics from washing machines.

In announcing the nominees, the prince spoke of the optimism and courage he was looking for.

“The people behind these projects are the heroes of our time, so let's support them. Because if we do this, we can make the world a cleaner, safer, more empowering place—not just for future generations, but for the lives we want to lead now.”

After the ceremony, Mayor Paes said Prince William was “amazed by the beauty of the city” and joked: “So he has the keys and can do whatever he wants for the next 72 hours. The city belongs to Prince William. I'm still the king, but it will belong to him!”

Prince William's visit to Rio de Janeiro is the most significant royal engagement he will make this year and will also mark the first time he has been seen as a member of the royal family since the crisis surrounding his uncle Andrew.

There were rumors that Prince William was heavily involved in the king's announcement last week of sanctions against Andrew, stripping him of his remaining titles and asking him to leave his Windsor home, but people close to the situation say that is not the case.

Although William would have a powerful and influential voice as the future monarch, the decision was ultimately made by the king, working with his private team of advisers and in conjunction with the government.

The visit to Brazil will include two key environmental events and will also allow him to explore some of Rio's other famous attractions.

As an avid football fan and patron of the English Football Association, it was no surprise that his first day included a pilgrimage to the Maracanã Stadium, home to some of the football-mad country's most famous moments.

There he was met by the player who wore the green and yellow jersey more than anyone else, Brazil's most capped star Cafu, and presented him with an autographed Brazil number 2 jersey.

Legendary right back the only player in history to appear in three World Cup finalsthen joined Prince William in conducting exercises involving local children.

The royal, who arrived in a smart pair of white trainers, didn't need a second invitation to step onto one of the world's most famous football grounds.

One of the more unusual teaching methods involved him playing a game with a group of young girls in which all players had to compete by carrying a cup of water to improve their balance.

And then, towards the end of the session, the Prince found himself under peculiarly English pressure when he was forced to take a penalty – a task that has seen many an Englishman fail at the biggest moments of the tournament.

But Prince William needn't have worried as he slotted a well-timed penalty past 14-year-old goalkeeper Pedro Enrique and was then surrounded by a crowd of his teammates who all wanted a congratulatory high five.

Young Pedro said he was “scared and nervous” to face one of the most famous men in the world, but said: “I stopped him from scoring. It was a good penalty.”

And the sporting activity did not end there – Prince William later went to Copacabana Beach, where he played beach volleyball with Brazilian national team player Carolina Solberg.