Rory McIlroy knighthood demand to King Charles after Masters win | Golf | Sport
Rory McIlroy’s second Masters triumph has sparked calls from fans for King Charles to bestow a knighthood upon the golfing superstar. The 36-year-old was notably absent from the New Year Honours list late last year amid alleged tax concerns.
However, despite the 36-year-old making his feelings on the matter known, he was conspicuously overlooked. Now, following his becoming only the fourth golfer ever to claim back-to-back Masters titles, supporters are firmly of the view that he deserves to be dubbed a Sir by the King himself.
The Royal Family’s official X account reposted a tribute highlighting McIlroy’s victory on Monday morning, congratulating the golfer with the message: “Congratulations Rory McIlroy on your extraordinary back-to-back win at the Masters.”
The comments section, however, told its own story. One fan reposted the congratulations and remarked pointedly: “Now give him his knighthood.” Another chimed in: “Hopefully he is knighted for his efforts this year? Arise, Sir Rory McIlroy has a nice ring to it.”
A third commented: “Arise, Sir Rory! He definitely deserves it.” While a fourth said: “One might think a knighting would be in order.” A fifth predicted: “I see a knighthood in the upcoming King’s Birthday Honours for Rory!”
McIlroy was quizzed in November last year about the prospect of receiving a knighthood. He said: “That’s obviously up to people a lot more powerful and important than me. But I mean, if it were to happen one day, it would be a very proud moment in my life.”
Yet in December last year he was notably absent from the honours list despite being widely tipped to feature. The Telegraph reported that this was due to an intervention by tax officials.
A report suggests that the 2025 Sports Personality of the Year’s omission bore similarities to David Beckham’s lengthy exclusion, whereby his knighthood was blocked after a red flag was placed on his nomination following an investment in what HMRC later deemed to be a tax avoidance scheme.
The Telegraph claimed that while the precise nature of McIlroy’s snub remained unclear, he was amongst a number of individuals who had invested in a scheme challenged by the taxman. The scheme was not illegal. The next chance for McIlroy to receive a knighthood would be on the King’s Birthday Honours list in June.
