Liverpool fans boo national anthem on day of King’s coronation

Liverpool fans booed the national anthem on the day of the coronation of King Charles III.

“God Save the King” was played before the club’s fixture against Brentford, prompting section of the Anfield crowd to voice their displeasure.

Chants of “Liverpool, Liverpool” could also be heard from the Kop while the anthem played.

Booing of the national anthem by Liverpool supporters became widespread during the 1980s, and was heard before last year’s FA Cup final.

The Premier League had advised clubs to play the national anthem before this weekend’s fixtures to mark the crowning of the new monarch.

The league did not, however, make it compulsory, but Liverpool confirmed on Friday that they would play the anthem.

“Before kick-off and in recognition of the Premier League’s request to mark the coronation, players and officials will congregate around the centre circle when the national anthem will be played,” a statement from Liverpool said.

“It is, of course, a personal choice how those at Anfield on Saturday mark this occasion and we know some supporters have strong views on it.”

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp said on Friday: “The club’s position is my position. That is clear. Besides that, this is definitely a subject which I cannot really have a proper opinion about. I am from Germany, we don’t have a king or a queen, I am 55-years-old and I have no experience of that.

“Watching from the outside, it is a nice thing to watch when all the weddings are massive things in Germany but no one really knows what it is like. It is like watching a movie. We don’t feel that. That is it pretty much.

“I am pretty sure a lot of people in this country will enjoy the coronation, some will not be interested and some will not like it. That is it and that is over the whole country. That is all I can say about it. The club’s position is my position.”

In London, dozens of protesters from anti-monarchy and environmental groups were arrested ahead of the coronation of King.

Supporters of the Republic campaign group, including the chief executive Graham Smith, were arrested on Saturday morning and saw hundreds of placards reading “Not My King” seized by the force.

There were also protests held in Cardiff, Glasgow and Edinburgh.

Booing the anthem is not new as supporters have been doing it for years because of a long-standing resentment against the establishment due to Government attitudes towards the city dating back to the 1980s and, more recently, in relation to the handling of the Hillsborough disaster and the fight for justice.

Liverpool felt they had been put in an impossible position by the Premier League “strongly suggesting” the anthem was played and sources admitted they had taken a “tough” decision to play the anthem but believed in safe freedom of expression, even though they were fully aware the response would not be favourable.

During Wednesday’s win over Fulham the Kop sang “You can stick your coronation up your a***” but in his programme notes Jurgen Klopp, who admitted he was “not an expert on English history or the monarchy, wrote: “We will be busy with our own concerns, of course, but I would like to take this opportunity to wish King Charles III well, not just today but also for the future”.

Includes reporting from PA