Camera Catches King Charles's Surprising Reaction When Rugby Team Asks Him for Group Hug

One thing to know about six-time Rugby World Cup champs the Black Ferns? They know how to make bold moves on and off the field. Case in point: when they asked the King of England to join them in a group hug.

Yesterday, British rugby team the Black Ferns visited Buckingham Palace and met with none other than King Charles himself. Throughout the event, there were songs, selfies (more on that below) and one surprising request for a group hug. But perhaps more surprising than the ask? The monarch's reaction. See the video below.

In the video, which was posted to Instagram by the Black Ferns and Buckingham Palace, a member of the team asks King Charles for a hug. He responds, "A hug? Why not?" Naturally, the team screams in excitement and rushes to surround him as he smiles brightly.

The caption of the post read, "Hugs for His Majesty." But this wasn't the only social media moment to come out of the Palace visit. The royal fam and the Ferns also shared the below video where the team explores, chats with the monarch, presents him with a signed jersey, sings a song and explains what it was like to hug the king.

During the event, it also seems that the king broke royal protocol—the one involving taking selfies. He proudly posed for a selfie with the Ferns, which used to be a royal no-no (though things seem to be a little more lax in recent times, given that Prince William and Kate Middleton have also both broken the rule).

Greg Agnew, a royal fan who attended Queen Elizabeth's garden party in 2017, explained to Insider, "The one thing they talked about a lot was no selfies, and the reason was that they didn't want people turning their backs to the royal family and the queen. And that was very important to them. You do not turn your back on the royal family, and you do not attempt to walk up and talk to them."

Even Meghan Markle once strictly followed protocol by saying no to selfies. Royal journalist Victoria Murphy said in a 2017 tweet, “Meghan is learning the royal ropes already, telling one couple who asked for a selfie in Nottingham today: ‘We’re not allowed to do selfies.’”

But it seems the king was none too concerned about such rules during the rugby team's visit.