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Fans booed as players lined up for respective national anthems, with Amhran na bhFiann targeted and then more jeering for God Save the King
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England and Ireland face fines after both national anthems were jeered at Wembley ahead of the Nations League clash between the countries.
The football associations of both nations were punished for jeers during the anthems when they met in Dublin in September, with the English FA fined £10,500 for the incident being a repeat offence. The FAI was fined £8,400 for home fans jeering God Save the King at the Aviva Stadium.
Uefa is now almost certain to issue more sanctions after the anthems were loudly jeered in the moments before Sunday’s clash at Wembley, with a clear reaction around the stadium to the Irish anthem which was the first one to be played.
Ireland fans in the away section, which had some empty seats, also jeered when God Save the King was played, while “No Surrender” could be heard from some sections of the England supporters.
Away fans were also heard taunting England supporters with a “Lizzie’s in a box” chant about Elizabeth II after kick-off at Wembley.
“Wembley Stadium has a zero-tolerance policy on any form of anti-social, offensive and discriminatory conduct, and anyone found guilty of this behaviour will be prevented from entry or ejected from the stadium and reported to the authorities,” read the supporters’ guide from Wembley ahead of the game.
“Any offensive chanting, gesturing and displaying of abusive messages is unacceptable and will not be tolerated. People who are found to have committed offences face stadium bans and potential criminal prosecution.”
The fixture in September saw the anthem discussed widely as England interim manager Lee Carsley, who was an Ireland international as a player, said he would not sing God Save the King.
Carsley said at the time: “This is something that I always struggled with when I was playing for Ireland. The gap between your warm-up, your coming on to the pitch and the delay with the anthems. So it’s something that I have never done.
“I was always really focussed on the game and my first actions of the game. I really found that in that period I was wary about my mind wandering off. I was really focused on the football and I have taken that into coaching.
“We had the national anthem with the Under-21s also and I am in a zone at that point. I am thinking about how the opposition are going to set up and our first actions within the game. I fully respect both anthems and understand how much they mean to both countries. It’s something I am really respectful of.”
Asked to confirm if he ever sings the anthem, Carsley added: “No [I don’t].”
Meanwhile, England Women’s friendly against Switzerland will see a second protest over the banning of a teenage girl for asking a “bearded” transgender opponent “Are you a man?” following a demonstration before Sunday’s men’s match.
More than 200 women and men were estimated to have descended on Wembley amid growing outrage over a six-match suspension imposed last month by a national serious case panel on a 17-year-old with suspected autism, who wept upon being grilled about her comments.
A group calling itself Twelve O Five, which organised Sunday’s protest, is planning a second demonstration at next month’s Lionesses friendly at Bramall Lane.
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