Why Queen Letizia has to wear sneakers

Queen Letizia of Spain, known for her elegant style, has temporarily traded her high heels for sneakers. But why is one of the heads of Spanish royalty opting for casual footwear?

On Monday, May 6, during the ‘Emocionarte’ concert at Teatro Real for the Princess Girona Foundation, Queen Letizia debuted her new look. Dressed in a red tweed jacket and white trousers, one eye-catching detail was her choice of footwear, white sneakers.

A royal injury

Over the recent weekend, while attending the anniversary of King Felipe VI’s Flag Oath in Zaragoza, the queen, wearing her usual formal choice of shoes, appeared to move with a little more caution.

She later revealed the cause, a fracture in the proximal phalanx of her right foot’s central toe. In layman’s terms, this bone is similar to a knuckle, starting at the base of the toe.

The injury, sustained after a mishap with her right foot, required bandaging to immobilise the area and assist in its recovery. As a result the queen has been forced to stay away from high heels for the next few weeks.

Fashion meets comfort

This marks the first occasion Queen Letizia has donned sneakers at an official event, though not the first time she has been photographed wearing them.

She’s previously sported them during a family photo before Infanta Sofia’s departure to college in the UK, and at La Palma’s El Fuerte barracks visit post the Cumbre Vieja volcano eruption.

For the time being, Queen Litizia’s footwear choice will be limited, but luckily with changing times, sneakers have become more acceptable for formal occasions and work situations.

Fashion expert Jesus Reyes, in an interview with Mujer.es, noted the evolving acceptance of sneakers in professional settings.  ‘Going to the office in sneakers can still be a tough sell in certain sectors,’ Reyes commented, ‘but fashion and social protocol are rapidly changing.’