Liverpool fans boo the national anthem at home to Brentford with Hibernian and Celtic fans taking to stage a King’s Coronation protest.
Liverpool announced that they will be playing the national anthem before their Premier League match against Brentford. However, this is a decision that won’t go down well with most supporters.
Reds fans are known for their hostile attitude toward the establishment, including the Royal Family, and Conservative-led governments. It stems from the fact that former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher put Liverpool in a “managed decline”, during the 1980s, warning her “not to over-commit scarce resources to Liverpool”.
The official papers reveal that the former Tory chief was advised to leave Merseyside following the 1981 Toxteth Riots, as unemployment increased due to the industrial decline of the city.
Thatcher, at war with Liverpool’s Labour-dominated Councils, was indifferent to the lack factory development. She also cut public services for the city to increase the unhappiness of Liverpudlians.
During this period, the Prime Minister was warned by Sir Geoffrey Howe (now Lord Howe) that Liverpool should “be left to managed decline”, and to not “over-commit limited resources to Liverpool”.
The Hillsborough tragedy is another example. Conservative MP Irvine Patnick has repeated falsehoods about the tragic incident, in which 97 Liverpool fans lost their lives. While serving as Editor of the Spectator in the future, Boris Johnson also approved an article describing people of Liverpool to have a victim mentality.
Liverpool, a city that is centered on its community, has adopted a “Scouse not English” persona. Banners displayed at Anfield show disillusionment with the English elite and Westminster.
Merseyside residents also don’t pay much attention to the England national football team. This has been exacerbated in recent years due to Gareth Southgate refusing to select Trent Alexander-Arnold, the boyhood Scouser.
Last season, the disconnect between Liverpool’s supporters and the establishment became evident during the FA Cup and League Cup Finals at Wembley. Supporters expressed their frustrations by booing “God save the Queen” in both Wembley shows.
The resentment of Liverpool fans was displayed once again when the new national anthem is played before the Reds kick off their evening match against Brentford.
Liverpool fans boo the national anthem before kickoff #LIVBRE pic.twitter.com/oo2W4hXQHy
— CapitalLivNews (@CapitalLivNews) May 6, 2023
National anthem can barely be heard over the boos and chanting at Anfield 🔊 pic.twitter.com/QM41Bg1yUv
— Football Daily (@footballdaily) May 6, 2023
Speaking after the match, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp, who had wished “King Charles III well, not just today but also for the future,” in his programme notes, said: “We have freedom of speech. That means a free opinion as well. It was clear that something like this would happen, I think everyone knew it. And that is allowed. That is fine.
“Nothing else happened and there was not any kind of chants or anything like that. It was just that the people showed [their feelings].
“I don’t know exactly what it is but the people of Liverpool in the past were not always happy with how the city or the club was dealt with so that is what they did.”
Hibs fans at home to St Mirren today @HibernianFC pic.twitter.com/LHiwUFqbhs
— Fitba Culture 🏴 (@fitbaculture) May 6, 2023
Fans of Hibs have displayed a banner in protest against the King’s Coronation, ahead of today’s match with St Mirren.
The match began just a few minutes after the Coronation celebrations of King Charles III in London ended.
And Easter Road ultras wanted to get their point across, with a group of supporters unfurling banner which read “F*** the coronation” and “Feed the poor”.
They also sang ‘you can stick the coronation up your a***’.
Easter Rd message to the Royal parasites #GGTTH pic.twitter.com/ta3yzv3CzX
— Kevin Williamson (@williamsonkev) May 6, 2023
Celtic fans came up with a similar chant against Rangers ahead of last Sunday’s Scottish Cup semi-final between the teams – and a clip of the incident made it all the way to popular BBC panel show ‘Have I Got News For You’ last night.
Many have hit out at the Hoops fans after they chanted about ‘shoving the coronation up your a***’ during last Sunday’s Scottish Cup semi-final win over Rangers at Hampden
Guest host Alexander Armstrong introduced the clip during the popular BBC satirical panel show to laughs and even some applause from the studio audience.
But something appeared to get lost in translation – as host Ian Hislop pronounced the club CEL-tic – with a hard ‘c’ rather than a soft ‘c’.
He said: “Once the Stone of Scone returns the CELTIC fans are going to change their minds.”
Host Armstrong corrected him, saying: “They go by Celtic… just to trip you up.”
“Stick the Coronation Up Your Ass.”😯
Glasgow Celtic fans ahead of King Charles’ Coronation Saturday. 🏴👑pic.twitter.com/kdKJTe7EAX
— Men in Blazers (@MenInBlazers) April 30, 2023
Earlier this week Piers Morgan took aim at Celtic fans – commenting on his TalkTV programme as a video of the Celtic support singing said anti-monarchy chant came to light.
Morgan said: “Well, utterly charming as ever of course from Celtic fans.
“But that’s what they’ve always been like towards our monarchy and I have a similar view of Celtic fans.”
When Queen Elizabeth II passed away, some Celtic fans mocked her death at a Champions League game.
Morgan slams those who drowned out the national anthem with a simple one-word tweet that called them ‘pathetic’.
After being criticised for his opinion, he added: ‘Championing free speech doesn’t mean agreeing with everything you hear.
‘Liverpool fans are perfectly entitled to boo the anthem on the day of the coronation, just as I’m perfectly entitled to call them pathetic for doing so.’
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