By Clare Lovell

LONDON, July 2 (Reuters) - Kate, Britain's Princess of Wales, mingled with the crowds at Wimbledon on Thursday, chatted with stewards and former competitors and lent her support ‌to the British hopefuls playing in the warm London sunshine.

Dressed in a striking blue ‌trouser suit, the 44-year-old wife of heir to the throne Prince William, watched Arthur Fery, one of the last Britons remaining ​in the draw, in his early games against Finnish qualifier Otto Virtanen on Court 18. The 23-year-old wildcard went on to win 5-7 7-6(3) 6-3 6-3.

In a courtside interview, a delighted Fery said he might have felt more nervous had he realised royalty was in the house.

"I didn't know she was here. I ‌probably would have been a bit ⁠more tight if I did," the French-born Fery said.

"There is lots of support at home in the UK so it's fantastic to play in front of ⁠them. It's great to do it for the UK. Selfishly I am doing it for myself first - but I'm always behind the other players and wishing them success."

The princess later switched to Court One, accompanied by ​double Wimbledon ​champion Andy Murray, where Katie Swan was battling ​26th seed Madison Keys of the United ‌States.

But the 27-year-old Swan, also a wildcard after slipping low in the rankings following a back problem that threatened her career, could not capitalise on the royal support and went down 6-1 6-4.

"I wish I could have had a better result with her supporting me, but, I mean, it's amazing to know that she was there," Swan said.

Keys, the 2025 Australian Open champion and a quarter-finalist twice at ‌Wimbledon, arrived fresh from taking the Eastbourne grasscourt title and ​was just too powerful for Swan.

The princess, who is an ​enthusiastic tennis fan and patron of the ​All England Club, earlier talked to people who had been queuing since the ‌early hours to enter the grounds and ​chatted to workers in the ​ticket office.

But she was gone by the time another British wildcard Jacob Fearnley fought hard for nearly three hours but succumbed eventually to the big-serving Spaniard Jaume Munar 6-4 7-6(3) ​6-4.

A fourth Briton Jan Choinski, ranked ‌100, was taking on American 17th seed Frances Tiafoe as the shadows lengthened on the ​bowl-like Court Two, bidding to join Fery in the third round.

(Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar ​and Clare Lovell in London; Editing by Alison Williams)

By Diego Oré

MEXICO CITY, July 2 (Reuters) - Amid the sea of green that washed over Mexico City after the country's World Cup victory over Ecuador on Tuesday, one shop defiantly ‌hoisted the Ecuadorian flag and welcomed all the downtrodden fans of Mexico's opponents to a ‌place of refuge.

Welcome to the Losers Cafe, a coffee shop in the cosmopolitan neighbourhood of Condesa that is comforting fans of the ​losing teams.

Each morning, small flags representing the defeated teams are raised at the cafe's entrance to foster a sense of community. Inside, a free drink awaits those who come bearing the jersey of the losing team. Even the napkins read "dry your tears".

Monse Aguilar, a 24-year-old photographer supporting South Africa, visited the Losers Cafe earlier this ‌week after her team lost 1-0 ⁠to Canada on Sunday and were eliminated from the World Cup.

"It's like a hug for the heart after losing," she said as she sipped a free drink.

The Losers ⁠Cafe was the brainchild of the Swedish dairy alternative brand Oatly, which then partnered with Ian Infante, the owner of the coffee shop.

Infante, whose shop is normally called Compay Cafe, said the idea resonated with him. The 38-year-old ​is originally ​from Venezuela and started the shop as a street ​stall in the nearby Roma neighbourhood before ‌it grew into a storefront.

As an immigrant, he said, he immediately understood "the emptiness left by loss".

But his customers didn't all get it, at first. He said that during the first week of the World Cup, some struggled to grasp the concept of the newly branded establishment.

"People were saying, 'I'm not a loser.' But once we explained how it works, they understood it and began to enjoy it more, feeling a bit more ‌connected to defeat," Infante said.

Rocio de la Cuadra Diaz, market ​developer for Oatly Mexico, said the company chose to launch the ​campaign in Mexico's capital - rather than in ​any of the U.S. or Canadian cities also hosting World Cup games - because of ‌the rapid growth of the brand in ​Latin America and the local ​sense of humour.

"The concept of creating a cafe for losers in Mexico made sense because we almost always lose," said De la Cuadra.

Now that Mexico have won their first knockout game in ​40 years, that mentality might change. ‌Mexican fans are praying that El Tri can pull off a historic upset in their ​clash against England on Sunday.

And if not, there will always be the Losers Cafe.

(Reporting by ​Diego Oré, editing by Laura Gottesdiener and Toby Davis)