Prince Albert II makes Statement about AS Monaco Basketball Team’s Financial Difficulties
Due to financial difficulties, AS Monaco Basket is being excluded from France’s professional basketball leagues and is expected to join the third tier. An official statement from Prince Albert II was released by the palace on 4 September:
“The situation at AS Monaco Basket is a source of profound disappointment for many of us and calls for clear thinking and responsibility. Having already experienced similar difficulties in the past, in 1991, the club must now be able to rebuild itself on solid foundations….I send a message of confidence to the players, staff, management, volunteers, and supporters: these difficulties must be overcome collectively, with ambition and responsibility. I also welcome the Government’s support for the club. Basketball has become a true showcase for Monaco. We must give it the resources to continue its story and contribute to the renown of our Principality.”
Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene welcome Council of Europe to Palace
Monaco hosted the Committee of the Council of Europe during their 1567th meeting on 2 September 2026. One hundred ambassadors and permanent representatives of 46 Member States convened at the Oceanographic Museum before a reception at the Princely Palace. The events were one of the highlights of Monaco’s current Presidency of the Council of Europe.
“In the face of the war against Ukraine, in the face of growing distrust between nations and the rule of law being called into question, multilateralism and dialogue remain irreplaceable.
No country, whatever its power, can meet such challenges alone. And the Council of Europe, with its conventions, its Court and its monitoring mechanisms, offers an indispensable framework, one that it falls to us collectively to preserve, to defend and to strengthen,” said Prince Albert II during the reception.
Retired Palace Chef given New Role by Prince Albert II
Although Christian Garcia is retiring after almost four decades at the helm of the Princely Palace’s kitchens, Prince Albert II has offered him a new role. A Sovereign Decision published in the Journal de Monaco reveals that Garcia has stepped into his new role as the Prince’s Personal Representative for Gastronomy. Although the responsibilities of the new role have not been publicly described, Garcia is expected to continue representing Monaco through culinary events.
Garcia’s career as Head Chef at the Palace was supposed to be a temporary, seven-month kitchen position that began in 1987, when he was 23 years old, and continued for 39 years. He quickly became a central part of everyday life and official events at the Palace, working closely with the late Prince Rainier III for 17 years before continuing his service under Prince Albert II. Throughout the years, he cooked for many famous world figures and leaders, including Queen Elizabeth II, Nelson Mandela, and Barack Obama. Cédric Chabaudie has succeeded Garcia as the palace head chef.
Pierre Casiraghi, Beatrice Borromeo, Princess Alexandra attend Mathilde Favier’s Funeral
Mathilde Favier, public relations director for Dior, recently died in a car accident at the age of 57, along with her partner, film producer Nicolas Altmayer, aged 61. Her funeral was held at Saint-Sulpice church in Paris on 31 August.
Fashion figures like Claudia Schiffer, political figures like Brigitte Macron, and royalty attended the funeral. The princesses of the Two Sicilies, the princes of Greece, Princess Vittoria of Savoy, Pierre Casiraghi, Beatrice Borromeo, and Princess Alexandra were in attendance. Both Pierre Casiraghi and Beatrice Borromeo are ambassadors for Dior. Longtime director of public relations for Christian Dior Couture for over a decade, Mathile Favier was a celebrated fashion figure.
Prince Jacques makes First Official Visit to his “Marquisate” with Princely Family
Young Prince Jacques, accompanied by Prince Albert II, Princess Charlene and Princess Gabriella, made a historic visit to Les Baux-de-Provence on Saturday 5 September. The heir to the Monegasque throne, titled Marquis of Baux, made his first official visit to his marquisate, as his father had done in 1982. The title honours the historical ties between the princes of Monaco and the kings of France.
Anne Poniatowski, the town’s new mayor and vice-president of the French association of Grimaldi Historic Sites, welcomed the Princely Family on the esplanade of the village’s castle, where Prince Jacques received the keys to the city. The mayor also presented the young prince with a small sword as a gift. Prince Albert II also received the keys to the city when he visited the town with his mother, Princess Grace, in June 1982. It was one of Princess Grace’s final trips, as she passed away five months later.
The family then visited the Church of Saint Vincent, which had benefited from a generous donation by Prince Rainier III many years ago. The stained-glass windows, created by master glassmaker Max Ingrand, were gifted to the Church to commemorate the birth of Prince Albert II.
