USA women’s players refuse to sing national anthem again at Women’s World Cup

Football Digest: Women’s World Cup shaping up to be most competitive yet

The United States Women’s national team has once again come under scrutiny for remaining silent during the national anthem. In their third, and final, group stage game against Portugal, the majority of the team opted against singing The Star-Spangled Banner, which has sparked a controversial debate.

The goalless draw was enough for the team to qualify for the last-16, but it was the third time in a row in which several members of Vlatko Andonovski’s team chose not to sing. Ahead of their World Cup opener against Vietnam, the defending champions saw six of the starting eleven players stay silent and opt against putting their hands over their hearts.

The following match against the Netherlands saw much of the same. Although, some players ahead of facing Portugal did sing along, albeit quietly.

Players including star striker Alex Morgan were seen quietly singing, with Julie Ertz, Alyssa Naeher, Lindsey Horan and Morgan placed their hands over their hearts. The majority of the squad stood motionless, a stark contrast to the Portugese team who belted out their anthem with pride.

Following the anthem fans were quick to react to show their displeasure. One fan tweeted: “If the US Women’s Soccer Team doesn’t care about our National Anthem, I’m not going to support them. Anyone else feel the same way?”

Another agreed, posting: “This is just SAD!!! Most of the U.S. Women’s Soccer Team players REFUSED to sing the American national anthem. They are not REPRESENTING our country well.”

However some fans are supportive of the team’s gesture: “I am so proud of the US Women’s soccer team” ons user tweeting with a series of clapping emojis.

US stars have refused to sing the national anthem as a form of protest against racial injustice and police violence. In 2016, some players kneeled. Rapinoe explained: “I can understand if you think that I’m disrespecting the flag by kneeling, but it is because of my utmost respect for the flag and the promise it represents that I have chosen to demonstrate in this way. When I take a knee, I am facing the flag with my full body, staring straight into the heart of our country’s ultimate symbol of freedom — because I believe it is my responsibility, just as it is yours, to ensure that freedom is afforded to everyone in this country.”

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Following the game, USWNT head coach Andonovski responded to claims that the team lacked “passion,” saying: “The one thing I want to say is that this team wanted to win this game more than anything else.

“They’ve put everything they could in preparation for this tournament and every game that they go into, so to question the mentality of this team, to question the willingness to win, to compete, I think it’s insane. I’ve never seen this team step on the field and not try hard or not compete. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, they can say whatever they want, but I just know how this team feels.

“It’s not like we played well by any means. We owned it. We know it’s not good enough. We’re not happy with our performance, but we qualified for the next round. We’re moving on.”

The USWNT managed to progress to the last-16 of the Women’s World Cup after holding on to a 0-0 draw against Portugal.

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