Royal fans call Prince William a hypocrite for speaking against racism in soccer after failing to publicly support Meghan Markle

• Prince William was criticized for addressing racism in soccer but not in his family.
• The duke said he was "sickened" by the racism England players faced after the Euro final.
• He previously disregarded Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's allegations about racism.

Prince William has been criticized again for addressing racism in soccer after he did not publicly support his sister-in-law Meghan Markle after she spoke about facing racism.

The Duke of Cambridge said he was "sickened" by the racist abuse aimed at England players following their loss to Italy at the Euro 2020 final on Sunday.

"It is totally unacceptable that players have to endure this abhorrent behaviour. It must stop now and all those involved should be held accountable," he wrote on the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's Twitter account on Monday.

While William has been outspoken on the matter of racism in soccer, he defended his family after Duchess of Sussex spoke about her experience with racism in an interview with Oprah Winfrey on March 7.

During the interview, she said that some royals raised "concerns" about how dark her and Harry's first child's skin would be. She and Harry did not mention the names of these royals, though Winfrey said that Harry told her it was not the Queen or Prince Philip who made the remarks.

A March 9 statement from Buckingham Palace on behalf of the Queen also acknowledged the allegations, saying that "the issues raised, particularly that of race, are concerning."

When asked about the interview by reporters on March 11, William responded that "we're very much not a racist family."

Royal fans say William's comments on racism in soccer are hypocritical

Twitter user Love, Lola pointed out that Meghan Markle was trending on Twitter in the US following William's statement on Monday.

"Many were calling out his hypocrisy," the Twitter user wrote, before sharing screenshots of the 22 verified accounts she said she had found criticizing the duke.

Meanwhile, royal commentator Kristen Meinzer wrote on Twitter: "You have the ability to condemn racism - not just in soccer - but when it's directed at your own family members. Please use that power. It would speak volumes."

Representatives for the Duke of Cambridge did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

This isn't the first time William has addressed racism in soccer

The duke said he was "fed up" with racism in soccer during a royal engagement in September 2019, and wrote a tweet about online abuse players faced this February.

"I do wish you and your family were this vocally antiracist when the target of the racism was the Duchess of Sussex," Meinzer wrote in response to the tweet.

Representatives for the Duchess of Sussex declined to comment when reached by Insider.