Speech Templates for the Father of the Groom Speech

In this article I want to present you, briefly, the basic template for the father of the groom speech. It looks like I didn't say anything till now about the wedding toasts order, so before I begin describing the steps that you should follow when you prepare you speech, I'll talk first about the order of toasts at a wedding, because I consider this to be quite important and everyone involved in the wedding ceremony should know it. As you probably know, the one that gives the opening speech is the father of the bride, because he's the guest of the event (usually the bride's family is the one that pays for the wedding and takes care of most of the setup, so they're considered the hosts of the event). Next, you're the one that gives the following speech and after you comes the groom and the best man. These are the most common 4 speeches you'll find at any wedding. Beside these, there are also another 4 that aren't present in every ceremony, it depends more on the culture/country/tradition: mother of the bride, mother of the groom bride and maid of honor.
So, as you can see, you (the father of the groom) are the one that gives the second speech. This is ok, because the difficult part is done by the bride's father with the opening toast, so it takes off some pressure of you. Here's the basic template for your speech:

1. Thank the bride's parents

You should always start by thanking the bride's parents for the wedding setup, for their effort to prepare this wonderful wedding. Also, thank bride's father for the opening speech.

2. Thank the guests

Next, you should thank to everybody that made it to the wedding. Some of them came from far distance so they'll feel their effort to make it to the wedding is appreciated, so make sure you thank everybody for being present at your son's wedding.

3. Share a few stories about your son

This is the most interesting part o your speech, where you get to talk about your son. You should share some stories about him, some nice memories or moments that you two shared together and now it's a great time to let everybody know how happy you are that your son is getting married and he's starting now his own family. Here you can also include some funny stories about your son since he was a kid, maybe.

4. Compliment the bride

Every girl likes to be complimented, especially on her wedding day. So, welcome the bride into your family and say a few nice words about her, how happy she makes you son and what a wonderful couple they make together.

5. End with a toast to the newlyweds

Finish the speech by raising the glass and asking everybody to join and propose a toast to the bride and the groom. You can finish with a funny joke, a piece of good marriage advice or a wisdom quote about love or marriage.