The Duke of Cambridge hailed Jordan as a "beacon of hope" for the Middle East, as he spoke of his wife's fond childhood memories of living there, and addressed the plight of Palestinian refugees.

The Duke is being hosted by Crown Prince Hussein bin Abdullah II, the 23-year-old Sandhurst-trained second lieutenant in the Jordanian army with whom the Duke hopes to build a firm friendship.

He began his historic trip to the region by bonding with the Crown Prince as they watched England's World Cup match against Panama.

Crown Prince Hussein recorded the game for the pair to view later as William arrived in Jordan just as the second half began.

The duke, who is president of the FA and a keen Aston Villa fan, spent the remainder of the day avoiding the scoreline and swore the travelling media not to tell him.